Mother of the Noah
by RMXStudio
Summary: Many years ago, the Noah family had a traitor named the Fourteenth in the family...what if the life story of this Noah was remebered? How will everyone react? What does this have to do with Allen? Pairing not known yet; Fem! Allen; Rated T for future
1. Act 1: The Prolouge of Time

**12/28: Sup sups? I rewrote this chapter because I read through it and thought it was a piece of shit. Here's the message from the last time I rewrote it:**

**Sup sup? It's been a while, but I've still not really decided on how to do the next chapter, so I decided to redo a few of my older ones, namedly chapters 1-4. I thank everyone for their kind reviews, and I hope that this is okay for now until I do the rest of Chptr13. You all are awesome!**

**-JD**

* * *

Long ago, or maybe, not as long ago as we think, a young woman named Neah Walker married Adam Noah, a magician with many strange abilities. The two had fallen in love at first sight, and Adam had respected and loved Neah from the very beginning. He would take her all over the world with his magic, opening doors to different countries and even the usual things like a rabbit popping out of his hat just for her entertainment. She loved him back very much and cared for him at all times. It wasn't a surprise that she was just as caring when the two had children together.

Their children were **Dream**, the first child and only daughter, **Pleasure**, the second child yet the first son, **Bond**, the twins that were never to be separated, and **Wrath**, the youngest who had a bad temper. Neah had adopted a cat off of the street, who she named **Lust,** who would always stay with the family as she never wanted to leave their kindness. But of course, with their names as they were, and people not being as accepting as they maybe should've been, they had to have nicknames which they called each other when not at home. Dream became Road. Pleasure, Tyki. The Bond twins became Jasdero and Debitto. Wrath to Skinn, and Lust to Lulubell.

Their house was in the outskirts of an English city, so that Neah's noise couldn't be heard by people who didn't care for hearing clanking here and there during the day, because even though the lady of the house didn't have a job, she liked to invent things. She made a product called **Akuma. **She didn't know why she named it that, but it was probably just due to her imagination. They would do chores like cleaning the house, fixing anything that needed repairs, washing the dishes, and fixing dinner on occasions, but usually she herself would cook. **Lero**, a toy umbrella-styled Akuma, was Dream's favorite toy.

They lived a very peaceful life. Every evening, after the father returned from work, she would greet him with a kiss, saying that dinner was almost ready. The children would greet him, welcoming him home as the cat meowed for his attention. Once the table was set, she would bring in the food and they would say grace. Then their feast would begin.

But a dark cloud was surrounding the family in the very background, getting ready to make a surprise attack on their seemingly perfect family. After all, as the preachers within the churches would always say, magic and religion was never meant to coexist.

She and her daughter Dream were about to go on a walk. As they prepared to leave, the man of the house got an idea while watching an Akuma clean, not really taking notice to its content smile. Even though he had made a promise, he had earlier that day read one of those magic books that he promised Neah the day they married that he wouldn't read any longer. What if the Akuma had a use that was greater than what his dearest wife had invented them for? Therefore, he asked his wife if he could borrow an incomplete Akuma to test around with. She, trusting that there was no problem with this and was happy because he was interested in her creation, smiled at him saying yes. Then she and Dream left the house for their walk. Little did she know this would be the biggest mistake of her life.

He tinkered and toyed with the incomplete Akuma for hours and hours. What made its energy source so unique? It was just simple cooking oil. He continued changing its energy source, but it either had the same result as the cooking oil for a shorter time that the oil itself or didn't run at all. He cast spell after forbidden spell on it, not noticing any drastic change to the hunk of metal. Finally, when he was fed up, he slammed his fist on the table only to hit a large splinter that had developed there after his constant testing. He held his fist in one had while watching as his blood fell onto the Akuma's open fuel tank. Almost instantly after the blood fell in, an evil aura surrounded it. It twitched as a dark, hungering look came over its face before shooting at the husband who stood in shock. The Akuma realized that it had shot at one of its masters and apologized immediately, confused and horrified as to what came over it, the bloody energy leaving its body. But instead of getting the scolding that it expected, the husband shouted in glee! Finally, he had found what he believed was the true meaning for Akuma as the book had described.

"**There will be a man who creates a beast; with this beast, he will rule the world."**

He gathered all of the Akuma around the house excluding Lero and **Timcanpy**-a personal toy of Neah's- who were nowhere to be seen, and they took a trip through a door to Kyoto, Japan. There, the new blood-fueled Akuma were put to work. He laughed as the Akuma caused mass destruction in the area against the machines' will, until their minds were overcome with bloodlust. He began making and idea of an ark, a technology beyond anyone's belief. The children wouldn't want to be left out, so he made and idea for them to participate. Oh, his wife was going to be so pleased with him! She would love her new role in his idea!

She was walking on a wall with Dream right in front of her. She hummed a song that she had made some time ago to her. Dream tried humming along with her, but didn't know the song well, so she began to teach Dream the song. Their happy singing could be heard echoing throughout the empty streets. Oh, nothing could ruin this moment! The happy times that she had with her daughter and her family could never be erased…or so she though.

As they were heading back to the house, she felt that something was wrong. The Akuma's aura felt so…off. She stopped Dream from entering as she opened the door first. As she opened the door, a blood-covered Akuma, greeted her with a toothy grin and a 'welcome back, Mistresses'.

She stood in horror at the sight of it. She grabbed Dream and hurriedly walked in while holding her hand. She called for other children, only to be greeted by silence. Dream began to get scared and called for Lust. Still there was no response. Lero began to panic himself as Timcanpy flew around the area for any signs of life. There, so far, were none. Then the door to her husband's study creaked open.

What she saw, she felt that she would never forget.

Her husband was greeting her while her children stood behind him, seemingly lifeless. Their eyes were dulled and they looked forward without response to their names. She asked what he had done, feeling very much on edge.

He told her his plan, that he would release the new and improved Akuma upon the world to take it over, and also the fact that the children didn't agree, so he brainwashed them. Oh, the Akuma were so useful now! After he finished, he looked to see his wife's response.

It was COMPLETELY different from what he thought that it would be. His dear wife was crying. She was crying, praying that the Lord would excuse his delirium and repair his evil ways. She cried to him, pleading him to stop! He stared in shock at her. He had worked so hard…and THIS is the THANKS that he gets?! **THIS IS HIS REWARD?! **

He looked at her with a sadistic smile, saying that this is how the children had reacted. She would soon join them, he said.

She finally stopped praying and flat out snapped.

Her silver eyes had pure rage seeping through them. She told Dream to take Lero and Timcanpy and run. Dream ran to the door with the two like her mother had said, but then she looked back for a quick second. The two of them were holding swords that had previously been used for decoration, their colors the exact same with the same cross symbol on them. Suddenly, an Akuma blocked her way, cackling evilly. Just as it was about to bring its claws down and hurt her, **Mana**, her mother's brother, came in and with a slash from his Swiss sabre, destroyed the monstrous thing. They ran and hid in a closet, watching the battle between Dream's mother and father.

The battle was nothing short of gruesome. They were swinging their swords with all of their might and avoiding each other's attempt at killing, one on the side of God, the other on the side of Dark Magic. She had more battle cuts from trying to protect the children in the fight while her husband didn't care if a wall almost collapsed on them. She cried out to him all the while, pleading him to stop the madness while he still could. He, of course, refused the offer. Satan had such a great deal with him at the moment, it was too good to pass up!

Suddenly, a dark light began surrounding him. He cried out in agony as it seemed to form a soul within him. His shadow stretched out behind himself, eyes developing on it as it screeched. The first form of **Dark Matter**.

His attacks from then on were near spot-on. Every slash created a new cut on his former wife, his technique getting more and more out of hand. He stood as if he were completely mad, cackling as the Dark Matter floated around him, seeming almost to control his movements.

Neah stared at him at one point, desperation in her eyes as they darted from him to her hypnotized children, to the closet, and back to him. It was a losing battle. She knew that she most likely wouldn't win, but she had to do something…ANYTHING!

…Oh. She had stared too long. He had gotten beside her, and just as she was about to jump away, slash.

Off went her arm.

She cried out in agony, her voice cracking from the pain she felt. Dream had to turn her head away from the ghastly scene, plugging her ears as she tried not to cry. The magic-possessed man only giggled childishly, and impish grin spreading even wider, holding on to her paralyzed left arm, its hand still holding the sword.

But Neah hadn't given up yet.

Oh no, not by a long shot. Despite the pain she felt she growled under her breath as she looked up to the Heavens. She cried out in a loud voice for God to not allow such a thing to happen.

"PLEASE, GOD! DO NOT FORSAKE ME! Even though I wish to save him, I will do what I must, even if it means killing my own husband…I PRAY TO YOU, GIVE ME STRENGTH!"

The sword twinkled before it began to glow. A whitish-green light began surrounding her damaged shoulder and her severed arm. The Earl cried out as he dropped the arm, pain wracking through his body from the pure, holy energy that the glow gave off. The arm and the sword then began molding together, the hilt of the sword replacing the skin of the arm. The two glowing objects then began to connect to each other, the arm and the shoulder reassembling themselves. Her jet-black hair turned white with all of the stress on her body, even as she watched with horrified interest. Her arm then got longer as her hand stretched out to white claws, the cross that was formerly on the sword developing on the top of her hand. It was the birth of the first **Innocence**.

She wasted no time after she felt the bone and skin connect perfectly. Her arm extended out, grasping the man as she threw him into a wall, gritting her teeth from the pain of the dark magic. They were now hand-in-hand, Neah beginning to deal blows that devastated the insane earl. Her agility improved as she ran on walls to avoid his attacks, his wounds getting bigger and bigger.

But he had gotten an idea. Just as she was about to cut him with her claws yet again, he slashed at the ground, causing some of the foundation to fail. A wall had begun to collapse…right over her children. She wasted no time in protecting them. She quickly held up the wall with her now much stronger left hand as she nudged the "unconscious" children to safety from what could've killed them…but she had forgotten to watch her back.

At last, the final blow was dealt.

He stabbed her in her heart through her back as she cried out, coughing up blood. She fell limply to the ground, listening to her husband's cackling and gasping, saying that she should've joined him. As he limped into into the study again with the children, Dream, Mana, Lero, and Timcanpy came rushing to her. Dream cried as her mother slowly lost her breathe. She looked at her daughter's eyes, raised her weakened right arm, and wiped the tears off of her face, say that surely, she will go to heaven and see the Lord. She told Mana to keep her song and that it had been recorded into Timcanpy. She told Lero to watch over her dearest daughter and keep an eye on the other children as well. Then she told Dream to please never forget her…to at least remember the song if her father got to her and brainwashes her, too. As she began to die, she began to sing her song weakly…

_Soshite bouya wa nemuri ni tsuita_

Mana stood up and took Timcanpy, telling Dream that they had to go…that these were her farewell words…

_Ikizuku hai no naka no honoo_

Suddenly, the husband came back into the room to find Mana and Dream beginning to leave.

_Hitotsu, futatsu to_

_Ukabu fukurami itoshii yokogao_

He grabbed Pleasure by the hair, yelling that he would kill him if they left.

_Daichi ni taruru ikusen no yume, yume_

Dream stared in horror at the blank look on her younger brother's face, screaming at him to wake up. Mana was edging away, telling Dream to follow him.

_Gin no hitomi no yuragu yoru ni_

Dream looked at Mana then at her brother and father. After a few seconds, she knew what she had to do…

_Umare ochita kagayaku omae_

She screamed at Mana to run…run away. She couldn't leave her brother behind.

_Ikuoku no toshitsuki ga_

Her mother didn't leave her behind and she, as an older sister, wouldn't disgrace herself as an older sister. Her brother must be saved, along with her other younger sibilings.

_Ikutsu inori wo tsuchi e kaesshitemo_

Mana understood and wished her the best of luck before running. He must save his sister's song, after all, as he was told.

_Watashi wa inori tsuzukeru_

Dream looked back at her mother, her eyes blanking but still holding on to sing.

_Douka konoko ni ai wo_

As Dream began walking to her father, she herself began singing.

_Tsunaide te ni kisu wo_

Her father watched in disgust as she sang and told her to hurry up if she wanted Pleasure to live.

_Watashi wa inori tsuzukeru_

She looked back once more at her dearest mother, dying on the floor, with a weakened yet strong voice still singing to the end of her song…

_Douka konoko ni ai wo_

She smiled a little at her mother's dying voice, telling her to be strong no matter what and that one day, she will come back and save her…

_Tsunaide te ni kisu wo…_

As the door closed, she breathed her last breath at the end of the song…

She didn't stay alive long enough to feel the home that the two had built together with their kind words, family values, God's Word, and love burn to the ground.

The children are now what is known as Noah

The Father of these children is called the Millennium Earl

The Mother of these children is now known as the Fourteenth…

Who has been reborn into…

_Allen Walker._


	2. An Awkward Morning

**12/28: Sup sups? I rewrote this chapter cause I read through it and thought it was a piece of shit. Here's the message from the last time I rewrote it:  
**

**This is the second chapter I redid. The other two are up ahead. Ch 13 will be out as soon as I can get it out. Thank you all for your kind comments.**

**YOU ALL RULE!**

**-JD**

* * *

The chirping sound of birds could be heard outside as the sun's rays snuck into Allen's bedroom window. The white haired exorcist, not wanting to wake up, groaned and covered her face with her black comforter. Yes, Allen Walker is a girl, yet with the help of medical wraps and a…more recently suffocating vest, she had hidden her gender quite well over the past few years masquerading as a male. Nobody within the Black Order knew her secret, except Hevlaska, who knew from the day she met her, and Timcanpy, who would go to sleep in her shirt sometimes…but the main point was she didn't want to wake up that morning, as she had decided that the instant she started waking up from her, for once, dreamless sleep. But no matter how much she wanted to sleep, the sun just wouldn't let her. So, finally giving up, Allen sat up groggily, her bed hair sticking up here and there in small cowlicks, and stretched. That's when she noticed it.

"Oi…Timcanpy," she groaned as she poked the middle of her chest, "get out of my shirt. It's time to wake up."

Sure enough, the little golden golem poked its little head out of her shirt before stretching its wings.

"Get out. How many times have I told you not to sneak into my shirt while I'm sleeping?"

All it did was yawn in response.

"You little…" she growled, her face frowning up in disapproval.

_Knock knock_. The white-haired girl jolted with surprise.

"Allen-kun, are you awake?" Linali's mellow voice asked as it passed through the cracks of the wooden door.

"Y-yeah Linali, I'm up."

"Oh! Well, good morning!"

Allen could hear the cheeriness that came with morning people in her tone. How does she do it?

"Likewise," she responded, groaning internally.

"Koumi-nii-san has a mission for you, Lavi, and Kanda today. Please go to the office after breakfast."

"Thank yo-AH!" she squealed, as Timcanpy found the idle chat a perfect moment to sneak back into his favorite sleeping spot.

Oh, if only the place he was trying to creep in wasn't sensitive skin.

"Eh? Are you okay?" Linali asked nicely.

"Timcanpy, get out of my shirt!" she wailed, forgetting all about the female standing outside and how awkward that must've sounded.

"For crying out loud, I told you not to sneak into my shirt while I'm sleeping!" she grasped at the golem's head, pulling him out.

"Allen?" Linali asked cautiously.

"...yeah?"

"Timcanpy sneaks into your shirt?"

"Yeah. All the time, too. I understand that he likes warm places, but it gets annoying…"

"But you're a boy, so it should be okay, right?"

"…I guess…"

Her eyes unconsciously adverted to the upper right, sweat rolling down the side of her face.

"Well I'll see you later Allen-kun!" Then Allen heard walk away with her Dark Boots anklets clinking quietly.

She groaned as she fell back onto the bed, knowing that she couldn't stay there even if she wanted to.

"Pssssh! 'You're a boy so it should be okay' my ass…" Allen cursed as she pulled Timcanpy from her shirt once more.

She had finally managed to get up and get dressed after a few minutes of struggling with the vest. But as she tied the red ribbon around the collar of the shirt, she began feeling strange. It felt as if someone was calling out to her. She didn't know why, but she felt like she needed to protect whoever it was. She didn't know who it was and where they were, so as she got ready for her day, she whispered the Ark's song, somehow feeling that it would help.

* * *

It was not normal. Road was the one who was supposed to give the bad dreams, not get them. But somehow, in this twisted world that she lived in, a bad dream came upon her. Somehow, she was being interrogated…by a younger version of herself.

She wore an old-styled Lolita dress, with black cloth and fluffy white frills. Her brown, string-up boots were clean and shining. She wore a white lace flower in her hair, contrasting with her dark, bluish-black hair. The only thing not disgustingly cute about her was her face, which gazed emptily at her older self, a grimace on her face.

**You killed her**.

'I've killed many people. Be more specific,' she said with a smirk, feeling proud, which only made the younger doppelganger frown more.

**How can you smirk when you killed the very one who gave life to you?**

'That's not true. The Millennium Earl is still alive and strong!'

**He didn't give you life, you murderer.**

'What are you talking about?! Milleni is still alive!' she yelled, anger rising.

**MURDERER. SLAYER. SLAUGHTERER.**

'Shut up!' She screamed as she lunged at her copy, but it swiftly and airily jumped away.

**MURDER! MURDER! MURDER! DIE YOU MURDERER! **

A creepy smile spread across its face and shadows showed up behind it with the same smile. Blood began to drip off of her once clean boots. She flew straight in front of Road, eyes white and face black.

**MURDERER! MURDERER! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HA! DIE YOU SLAUGHTERER! DIE YOU SLAYER OF THE INOCCENT! DIE YOU KILLER! YOU MUREDERER! YOU MURDERER! KHAHAHAHA! DIE! DIE IN THE PITS OF HELL! DIE LIKE YOU DESERVE TO! HAHAHAHAHA!**

She screamed and cried. Why? Who had she murdered that gave life to her?

'How?! WHO?! How DID I kill her?! WHO ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT ANYWAY?!'

**MURDERER! MURDERER! YOU FORGOT HER! YOU FORGOT HER! YOU FORGOT! YOU FORGOT! **

But just as she was about to break down, she heard a small voice whisper.

_Soshite bouya wa nemuri ni tsuita_

_Ikizuku hai no naka no honoo_

_Hitotsu, futatsu to _

Somehow, the voice was calming her. It was as if she had heard it before. The voice had a certain melody that calmed her from the inside out. Even the Noah in her began to relax, though it remained jittery for a different reason.

_Ukabu fukurami itoshii yokogao_

_Daichi ni taruru ikusen no yume, yume_

But then, Road noticed that the voice was beginning to fade away.

'Don't! Stay with me, please!' She began running away from her past self and toward a light in the distance. As she got closer, the voice got louder.

_Gin no hitomi no yuragu yoru ni_

_Umare ochita kagayaku omae _

_Ikuoku no toshitsuki ga_

_Ikutsu inori wo tsuchi e kaesshitemo_

'Oh, please don't go!'

_Watashi wa inori tsuzukeru_

'Stay! STAY DAMMIT! DON'T GO!'

_Douka konoko ni ai wo_

'I NEED you! WHOEVER you are! DON'T GO!'

_Tsunaide te ni kisu wo_

"DON'T GO! I NEED YO-"

Road found herself sitting up in her bed, sweat rolling off of her skin. That voice…lead her out of her dream…her nightmare…

"DAMN IT! I don't get nightmares…but…thank you, whoever you are."

Just as she was about to hit the pillows again, her alarm clock went off. Or, rather, Lero burst into the room.

"Road-sama! YOU WILL BE LATE FOR SCHOOL IF YOU DON'T WAKE UP, RELO!"

"Shush. It's too early for all that noise, stupid Lero." Of course, Lero was caught off guard.

"Road-sama…are you okay? You don't seem like yourself, relo!"

"Yeah I'm fine…BAKA LERO-CHAN~"

"R-relo?!"

"Kukuku~ I wonder were my Allen-chan is today~"

"...relo..."

"What is it, Lero?"

"You're going to be late for school, relo…"

"OH! I almost forgot!" She then rushed out of the room to the restroom to get ready for school.

"…Something's not right with her today…relo"

* * *

Allen was glad when that strange feeling left her as she headed for the cafeteria. At least, that's where she thought she was heading…right? Oh well, her sense of direction is so horrible that she can't find the lunchroom. Big deal. But in her thinking about how bad her sense of direction was, she knocked into the LAST person she wanted to knock into that morning.

"Watch where you're going, baka moyashi!" the tall, cranky Japanese man called Kanda growled, one hand on his hilt.

"You watch it, BaKanda!"'he' retorted, fists on his hips.

"Che. Let me guess. You got lost while looking for the cafeteria."

He twitched. 'DAMN.'

"I was right on the spot, wasn't I? Stupid idiot, always getting lost," he snickered.

"I don't always get lost! Just 86.2% of the time I do….or less…"

"Or more."

"Shut up with you and your girl hair!" he yelled, his face reddening, arms and hands flailing upward as if flipping hair.

"What did you say?!" he replied, both hands at Mugen's hilt.

"You heard me, you-"

"Hey, YUU-CHAN~ MOYASHI-CHAN~" a red-headed, rabbit-like boy called out, waving his hand in the air as he broke up the fight.

"Oh...hey Lavi. What's up?"

"What do **you** want, you stupid rabbit?!" Kanda all but growled out.

"Well, I thought that I should say that everyone can hear you from the cafeteria!"

Kanda didn't reply.

"OH! I was looking for it! Will you lead me there please?" Allen asked, a hopeful look coming onto his face, eyes glittering.

"Sure! Are you coming too, Kanda?"

"Che. Just go away."

"But Yuu-"

"Just go dammit!"

"But…"

"C'mon Lavi. Just leave him be. That bastard," he growled out, tugging on his arm.

To be honest, Allen had more respect for Kanda then what she had shone, but she was disguised as a guy so her personality had to be somewhat different. She knew that Kanda was a samurai and that they were taught to ignore their emotions, but she thought that for now she would act like she didn't understand that. Whelp, now it's time to think about lunch. She would have mitarashi dango, a turkey sandwich, supersized of course, two bowls of chicken noodle sou-

She suddenly felt a shiver run up her spine as something pawed against the skin in between her currently hidden breasts.

"Oh Bloody HELL!" he cried out, reaching into his shirt, not really noticing Lavi's startled, yet questioning expression.

"What's wrong, Moyashi-chan?"

"Daggomit Timcanpy! Get out of my shirt!" he yelled, tugging on the golem's tail.

Little did she know that Timcanpy's warmth addiction was the least of her problems.


	3. Poor Unfortunate Allen

**12/28: Sup sups? I rewrote this chapter cause I read through it and thought it was a piece of shit. Here's the message from the last time I rewrote it:**

**Ch 13 isn't done yet, so I redid chapters 1-4 a bit. Last one I redid is the next one. Thank you all for your kind reviews and stuffz.**

**YOU ALL ARE AWESOME!**

**-JD**

* * *

At breakfast, Allen sat quietly while listening to Lavi talk. She couldn't help but blank out a few words as she chewed, thinking about why she thought of singing that morning.

"So Allen," Lavi continued.

"Huh?"

"Where you even listening to me?" he asked, a skeptical, yet humored look on his face.

"Uhh…somewhat."

"Huh. What did I say?" he smirked.

"You were talking about some girl you met in Spain," Allen replied before biting into a turkey leg.

"YEAH! And she was HOT!"

"Since when is a girl **not** hot to you?"

Lavi paused. Was it just him, or did Allen sound annoyed?

"Oi Allen. I was telling you about how she looked, too. With her big breasts and her-"

"Okay, okay. I get the point."

"...Allen."

"What?"

"Are you gay?" he asked as if it were the easiest question to ask in the world.

At this, she spit her soup back into her bowl. Technically, since she was a girl, being gay meant she like guys, but she had to keep up the guy façade.

"No! What makes you think that!?"

"Okay! Sorry. You don't seem like yourself today, Moyashi-chan..."

He sighed, "Sorry about that. I'm just a bit antsy today."

Just then, Chaoji walked into the lunch room with Marie. Marie was eating a sandwich that he had apparently gotten earlier.

"Morning, Lavi!"

"Sup Chaoji! How're you doing?" he greeted back enthusiastically.

"Great! We just got back from Egypt. It was a successful mission! General Tiedoll even picked up a new exorcist!"

"Great! When will we be able to meet him or her?"

"After a little bit! He's kind of tired right now," he replied, scratching the back of his head.

"Oh! Well that's okay. Train lag?"

"Yeah. According to him, he's never ridden on a train before."

"Really?! Man, it must've been rough for him then…"

As the two kept talking, Allen finally finished eating, put the dishes back into the cart, and got ready to leave the cafeteria. Lavi was talking with Chaoji, so she decided that she should leave.

"OI! MOYASHI-CHAN~"

Well, nevermind.

"Uh, yeah Lavi?" he asked, turning back around.

"Chaoji and Marie just came back!"

"Oh! Well, welcome back Chaoji! Welcome back, Marie!"

The tall, burly man paused in his eating, "Hello, Allen. How have you been?"

"I've been good, Marie."

Nodded before going right back to chewing.

"So, Chaoji, how hav-"

"I've been good. Thank you."

She sighed. Looks like he still hates her. He'd been cold to her since the Ark incident. You'd think he would understand her nature by now, but she guessed otherwise.

"Well…o-okay. I guess."

Suddenly, Linali ran into the cafeteria.

"Allen-kun, Lavi-kun, my brother is looking for you! We've been waiting for 20 minutes now!"

"Oh! Sorry Linali! Let's go Lavi," Allen said, following the Chinese girl to her brother's office.

"Right behind ya! Bye Chaoji, Marie," he yelled, following after the whitette.

* * *

When they finally got into the office, Kanda was already standing by a wall, the scientists were doing what they do, and Komui was sitting in his chair, sipping coffee from his bunny mug.

"You two are late! You were supposed to be here a little while ago!" he whined.

"Sorry Komui-san. I was putting up my dishes when Linali came in."

Komui nodded accepting his excuse as legible, knowing how much he ate.

"Do you have an excuse, Lavi-kun?"

"Uhh…..I was saying hi to Chaoji and Marie."

"Well, that's okay then! Let's start on the information of your mission!"

He suddenly fazed into a serious expression, the one he always did when he had to lay out the mission credentials. He placed both elbows on his desk, hands crossing in front of his face, fingers laced together.

"You will be going to Italica, Spain. In the ruins of the area, there have been reports of AKUMA activity. People trying to travel through the area are either never seen again, or they run out screaming for their lives. The survivors claim that they saw a huge monster or a killer jester. I think that they may be referring to a Level 3 AKUMA. There may be more than one. The most recent survivor said that they saw a child among the jesters. That may unfortunately be a Level 4. I will send General Tiedoll with you just in case things get out of hand and if there are more Level 4 AKUMA since the last report. I beg of you three to be careful and do the best you can. I shall pray to see you all back here after the mission to give your report."

"Yes sir," Allen replied.

"Okay!"

"Che."

"All right, we're done here," Komui said, fazing back out of his serious expression.

Just as the exorcists began to leave again, he spoke, "Oh, Allen-kun?"

The 'boy' blinked in response, still standing in front of the couch.

"Please stay behind. Everyone else, including the scientists, please go elsewhere or to the laboratory."

The scientists gave him confused expressions or grumbled at him, but nevertheless followed his orders.

After everyone left, it was only Komui and Allen. Or so that's what Allen thought, since Lavi and Bookman were hiding in a dark corner of the office.

"Komui-san, what do you need to talk to me about?" he asked, polite as ever as he sat down again.

"It's not me who needs to talk to you."

"Eh? Then who is-"

"That would be me, Mr. Walker," a deep voice echoed.

Out of the shadows of the office behind Komui, the commander of the Black Order walked out.

Malcolm C. Levrier.

"Well, it is a pleasure to see you again, Mr. Walker. But as much as I would rather drink tea right now, we have business to discuss."

Allen simply sat there stiffly. She REALLY didn't like where this was going.

"What do you need to talk about? Is it about my supposed heresy trial?"

"Oh, it will happen eventually, but you are much too important now," he visibly jolted a little, glaring at him at that, and the sadistic man grinned at his response, "We are already low on exorcists and you are over 100 percent synchronized with your innocence. You are quite lucky that we are at such a low stance right now, or your heresy trial would already be done."

"Was that a threat, sir?" she asked calmly, pupils constricting

"No. It was a promise."

Stiff silence followed the remark, Allen and Levrier locked in a visual showdown. Lavi frowned as he listened, not liking the way he was talking to his 'brother'. The action was not unnoticed by Bookman, who grumbled a bit under his breath.

"As much of a promise as it is, it probably won't be because you are the 14th. It appears that you may not be the 14th after all," he finally said, eyes closing.

That threw Allen off completely, ceasing her side of the stare-off, "Eh? What do you mean exactly?"

"Some members of CROW went to an abandoned house in London after figuring out that an innocence had been there before and found this book. It appeared that it was a book owned by the 14th before he died. If he did, that is," he said, walking around the couch as if circling prey.

He then handed her a book. It was black, a white cross imbedded into the leather, 'Do Not Open Please' sown into the top with red thread. When Allen opened the book, she suddenly felt the 14th smile. It was unusual for her to **feel** what the 14th was doing, so she kept in mind to check her room mirror when she got to her room to pack.

On the first page, it said:

_To whoever is reading this book, it said on the front not to open it, so now you're disobeying me. If you are one of my children, I'm probably right behind you so I'd check if I were you.^.^_

_Anywho, if you aren't one of my children, there is absolutely nothing important in here so LEAVE the book ALONE._

_Thankies~_

_- Walker_

'Walker? I can't read the first name. Is this really the 14th? I mean, c'mon. "Thankies"? The others may have skipped over this page…it IS half torn and all…'

When Allen started reading the book, she **felt **the expressions that the 14th was making, be it happy, sad, or mad. The pages had random sketches of what looked like robots. Often times, there would be a scribble of this person's thoughts. It was usually just things like "I guess the water doesn't work well" or "Don't add gun powder. It'll make it explode." Then after reading about 19 pages in, she came up to a picture that, for some reason, troubled her. There were these people all together in a picture. There were five children surrounding one chair. A little girl with somewhat spiky hair grinned as she held a bored-looking cat that looked suspiciously like Lulubell's real form, though it had no mark on its face.

All of the children looked familiar, too. The boy beside the little girl with curly black hair that chewed on a toothpick, the small child on the left within the picture, holding onto the chair's arm with a lollipop in his mouth, and the twins whose hands were intertwined at the same side the lollipop kid was, one of them having wavy blond hair, the other with shorter, fluffier black hair. They all wore clothing that wasn't necessarily professional, but looked more upper class and was very acceptable for the picture.

Then there was an umbrella that a man that was standing behind a chair was holding. He had sparse facial hair, though it was there, and a very relaxed smile on his face, a twinkle in his strange yet comforting yellow irides. The man wore no hat, letting his wavy black hair billow around his head, and the umbrella that the man was holding both looked familiar to her, especially with the pumpkin it had for a 'head'.

Her eyes widened with surprise when she saw Mana in the picture on the opposite side of the man with the hat. He wasn't wearing any clown make-up or clothes and he looked rich, hair tied into a ponytail at the back of his head. He too had sparse facial hair and looked quite a bit like the man on the other side, though his hair was brown and had two small, almost paintbrush-like collections of hair for a mustache.

Lastly, there was a woman sitting in the chair with her hands crossed over her lap. Out of all the people in this picture, she was the only one with glassy silver eyes. Her jet black hair was tied up into a large bun with a few small strands curling from it here and there, her bangs side-swept. He wore a top hat, unlike most ladies would, atop her head. A beautiful white rose with its thorns attached to the black ribbon wrapped around the body of the hat was standing out with stunning perfection. Mana's right hand was on her right shoulder while the other man's left hand was on her other shoulder.

"Who are these people in this picture?" she inquired.

"The Walker Family."

"But the only one I recognize is Mana," she muttered aloud.

Levrier didn't respond to that, only staring at her with contempt.

"He's not wearing any of the clothes that I used to see him in all the time…"

As Allen kept looking for more clues in the picture, she saw that the unrecognizable man and the woman in the chair both had a ring on their finger.

"Do you see anything, Walker?"

"That man with the umbrella and that woman are married. I can tell because they both have a ring. But what does this have to do with the 14th?"

"Do you see anything else that you recognize? Like a characteristic?"

"That woman has the same colored eyes that I-"

Then it all clicked…

"Yes, Walker. This picture proves your innocence of being the 14th. I have no idea who the children are, but I know who two of the adults are. There is Mana Walker and the woman is the 14th. The 14th is a female and, therefore, cannot be you. Congratulations, Mr. Walker. You cannot be trialed on this subject anymore."

But little did Levrier know, this picture would've been the perfect thing to trap her into the heresy trial. Allen understood the picture a whole lot more than he did. It showed on her face, too.

"Allen-kun? Are you okay?"

"I-I'm fine, K-Koumi…I mean Komui-san…I-…..I'm just g-gonna go pack to go on the mission…"

She then stood up stiffly, turned to the door, and slowly walked to it. She walked out without saying one more word.

"I don't understand. Allen should be happy," Komui said, confused.

"I'm sure that on the inside he's jumping for joy," Levrier mumbled to himself as he left the room through the back door to the science area.

Of course, Levrier was irritated.

"I don't think that was the face of someone who is rejoicing inside…" Bookman muttered as he came from the shadows. Lavi simply headed toward a side door to go talk to Allen. Once he was out of the library and down the hallway a little, he found Allen frozen in her spot a few inches outside of the door.

"Oi, Allen! I heard what happened outside, sorry about that by the way… but you should be happy! You won't get a heresy trial for being the 14th anymore!"

"Lavi…" Allen sounded utterly horrified.

"Eh?"

"You….you don't understand…"

"What? What are you-"

"I-I'm gonna go pack now."

"We don't leave till tomorrow All-"

"I'm going to go pack, Lavi."

But as she slowly walked away, she was wobbling…

Lavi stared after him before walking back into the office through the main door, seeing Komui and Bookman talking.

"Did he rejoice or something?" Komui asked.

"Well, how was he?"

"No. He only had one expression on his face."

"What was that?" Bookman asked.

"Panic. Shear, bloody panic."

* * *

Allen stumbled through the hallway. She couldn't believe it. For once, she was wishing that she really were a boy. But, now, she felt cornered. The picture told her everything. But because she wasn't watching where she was going, she eventually knocked into someone. Unfortunately, it was Kanda, for the second time that day.

"Oi Moyashi! Watch where you'r-" But he paused. He noticed that Allen's eyes looked glassy and shocked.

"What the fuck is wrong with you, Moyashi?"

"Sorry."

"What?"

"Sorry for knocking into you. Sorry." Kanda was actually getting concerned. Allen never said sorry without complaining about being called a moyashi. Something was seriously wrong.

"Oi Moyashi-"

"I-I have to go pack…"

Then he stumbled around him and walked…then broke out into a run without saying a single word or looking back.

* * *

She ran as fast as she could. She didn't know where she was going, but she ran. She felt like someone was leading her somewhere. May be the 14th leading her. Who knows. But wherever the 14th was leading her, she decided that she would follow it today. She didn't care about the confused faces that watched her run. She just wanted to run. All she wanted to do was escape that utterly trapped feeling that she had deep in her soul. That feeling that she was a small, white mouse running from a cat that she just couldn't shake off of her tail. She ended up running into a room. Her room. She slowed down and stopped by her bed, where she collapsed on the floor. She drew her legs up to her chest, folded her arms on her knees, and stared into the mirror that was on the other side of the room. Then she thought about what she knew.

Those children were the 14th's.

Mana was the 14th's brother.

The children were now the Noah clan.

That man that she didn't recognize before must've been the Millennium Earl.

And the worst of all:

The 14th was married to him.

That would mean that the 14th was the Millennium Earl's ex-wife. This would mean that if she were the 14th reborn, Allen HERSELF was the Millennium Earl's ex-wife.

'Oh God, help me…'

Allen felt too tired to pack up despite the fact she said that she was. She sat there on the floor, trying not to think. It was the only thing that she could do. She tried to keep herself from breaking out into tears while she slowly closed in on herself. She felt as if ice was growing inside of her heart. Like she was five seconds from getting caught into a mouse trap and a cat's jaws. Rivers of tears left her eyes as she cried soundlessly.

In the mirror, the 14th was looking at her. The 14th no longer looked like a portly man with a creepy black face. It now looked like a woman with a black dress on, the collar made of lace and white cotton that curled around her black neck. The waist of the dress was a corset, the bottom of it lined with white lace. The skirt of the dress was long and reached the floor, though it didn't hide the black, laced-up boots she wore. She had long, white flowing hair under a black top hat with curls at the end of the collections of hair, the white rose on it slightly withered. Her visage was still blacked out, white circles-for-eyes glowing in the abyss that was her face, but she didn't look nearly as creepy as before. While she watched Allen, instead of that usual creepy grin that used to be on the 14th's face…

All there was now was pity and remorse.


	4. Trip to the Mirror World

**12/28: Sup sups? I rewrote this chapter cause I read through it and thought it was a piece of shit. Here's the message from the last time I rewrote it:**_  
_**  
Last redone chapter! If any of you think that I could've done any of the other chapters a little bit better (preferably chapters 5-8) let me know and I'll do my best~ Ch 13 is not here yet, but I'll try to get it done as soon as possible! Thank you all for your kind reviews and awesome comments~**

**YOU ALL ARE AWESOME!**

**Also, if any of you could offer some constructive critisizm, I'd really appreciate that. I'd only want to give y'all top quality chapters!**

**-JD**

* * *

_Allen was walking through a circus. The music played with an eerie tone to it, its beat slow. Everything seemed distorted and grim. When she stepped into a puddle and looked down at her feet, she discovered that it was a Halloween Festival that day at the circus. As she walked, she heard creepy laughs, eerie sounds, and an occasional scream here and there. She was scared. But why was she scared? She had experienced things like AKUMA and the Millennium Earl and the Noah clan._

_But when she looked in a broken mirror beside her, she saw a little child. She had brown hair up in a sloppy ponytail and silver eyes. She wore a checkered jacket, black baggy pants, and black boots. She also had a cooking glove over her left hand. This was Allen from the past…before Mana died. She then heard a really loud scream right behind her and she squeaked from surprise before running blindly from it. She wanted to go home. She wanted to get out of this dream. She at least wanted Mana._

"_Mana! I'm scared! Mana! Help me, please!" There was no answer for the poor scared girl. She ran as fast as she could, calling out Mana's name as she turned and twisted throughout the circus area, but there was never any reply. After she turned a corner, she found herself back at the tent that they used to share. She ran into the tent, only to find it empty. As she searched the tent for any life, she once again found that there was a mirror in it. But as she stared into the mirror, a look of horror and unbelief took over her features. The music could be heard louder._

_She saw a man in the mirror behind her and her hair was, at the top of her head, slowly turning from brown to the white she remembers it to be outside of her dream. She reached to touch the mirror, but when she did, everything around her went white. She heard a small chuckle and turned around, the man from the mirror behind her, only now she could see his face. _

_One of his eyes was a spiral while the other one was open like a normal eye. There was a woman there, too. You couldn't see her face well, but you could still see two white circular eyes coming out of the shadow that was her face. She had long silver hair under a top hat with a white rose curled around it. Her dress was normal black at the top but once it got to her waist, it became a corset, the bottom of it lined with white lace before it became the long skirt of the dress. She wore high heeled boots which peeked from below the skirt._

"_I've been waiting to speak to you, Allen." The smile she had was heard, though not seen._

"_Wh-what?" Allen stuttered back, sweat rolling from her forehead._

"_My name is Yuuna Walker," she replied in a grand tone, "I'm the ex-wife of the sick, useless waste of space you call the Millennium Earl."_

_Eh? Well that ruined the mysterious mood a bit._

"_You remember Mana, right? He's our brother."_

"_Our?"_

"_I am simply a figment of your memories that you have forgotten," she stated arily._

"_So…I am you?"_

"_Yes. Your past self was Yuuna, me, for the most part, and now you are Allen."_

_Mana just stood there quietly._

"_I'm…I'm confused. So I am you…or you are me?"_

"_I know. It's awkward, right? You used to be Yuuna, but you are now Allen. I am the image of your past self. I am the memories that you don't remember yet. I am the one who knows the reason why you were born with an innocence."_

"_Why? Why was I born with one?"_

"_Because your past self had one, you ended up with one."_

"_Wait…so Yuuna…my past self…the …EX-wife of…th-that monster…had an innocence?"_

"_Yes. It was the first innocence ever made."_

"_Eh?!"_

_She giggled at her confusion_

"_Let me tell you a story, Allen," she began, a chair just like the one she had in the picture suddenly appearing behind her._

_She patted her lap before Allen nervously sat there._

"_A long, long time ago, you were Yuuna Walker. You had a happy life with a brother who loved, and still does love, you very much. You went to various places and achieved many, many things. Then you met a man named James Noah. He was a handsome person back then. Mana was weary of him at first, being the over-protective little brother that he is...you went out with him anyway, giving him a chance. He was a nice man…he was in his right mind at the time, anyway. Eventually, he asked you to marry him. And then…you said-"_

"_Th-that's enough…I don't want to hear anymore," she hurriedly said, hands waving in front of her, "I know that I had accepted it. But in the end…"_

"_No, Allen, it wasn't a complete mistake…You had Dream, Pleasure, Bond, and Wrath. Those are your-"_

"_Children…but how are they older than me? And if this happened a long time ago, how are they still that old?"_

"_James did it. When they are in their void, they only age slowly. They probably didn't leave the void much, so even when they are out of the void, they still aged a bit slower. There's only one way to get them back to normal…"_

"_How?"_

"_You have the ability to purify them of the Dark Matter."_

"_But I've tried that already…I only ended up making Tyki stronger…" she frowned, irritated at herself._

"_No…that's good. The fact that the Noah got stronger means that you had actually weakened it. It was only on defense mode. You can defeat the Dark Matter in him. You can defeat the Dark Matter in all of your children!"_

"_I'm still a bit antsy about calling them my children," she muttered, fidgeting in her 'seat'._

"_Why? I'm only calling them what they are," she replied, white eyes blinking owlishly.  
"I'm only 16 in the body outside of this dream…and I would've had five kids already from what you're saying…"_

"_Ohh…I see," she frowned, her left hand on her right elbow, the right thumb and pointer finger cradling what would be her chin, "Do you wish for me to tell you more later?"_

"…_Yes…"_

"_Okay then! I'll stick around you! If you wish to talk to me, simply touch a mirror and call my name or talk to a mirror."_

"_Yuuna, right?"_

"_Yes. Yuuna. You have to go back to your world now."_

"_Eh? I thought I was dreaming."_

"_You were until I pulled you into the mirror," she smiled, taking note of Allen's shocked expression._

_She proceeded to kiss Allen on the forhead._

"_Goodbye, Allen Walker."_

* * *

When Allen woke up, she found herself on her bed with her covers on her body. When she looked at the mirror, she saw Yuuna standing in it, smiling at her. Allen could see her face better now. Though it was still a black abyss and the eyes were still white circles, her face wasn't nearly as misty as before. Allen wasn't shocked, but she just smiled back and went to sleep.

"_And she never packed any clothes, either…te he_~"

* * *

Road was troubled. She had been feeling an awkward aura all day.

"Mou Tyki~ I want to go see Allen!" she cried out, kicking her legs in the air.  
The man sighed, still staring at his book, "I understand that he's interesting, but you can't just go see him. The Earl wouldn't like you going to see Allen without fighting him."

"Then why don't I just bring him back with me?" she asked, sitting upright.

"Ah…I'm not sure. You'll have to ask him about that."

"...Agh! I'm bored! Tyki! Play with this." She threw a much worn toy at his face.

He sighed a little harder before grasping the toy, making it talk, "I don't want to play right now~ Do something else~ Let Tyki read~" Then he threw it back to her, watching as she caught it before he went back to his book.

"Mou…you're no fun…"

"Have you finished your homework anyway?"

She blinked at him owlishly.

"Thought so. Go do your homework. Get the Earl to help you with it or something."

"Dammit."

"A young lady of your stature shouldn't curse, relo!" the umbrella reprimanded, entering the room.

"Oh! Lero! Help me with my homework, will you?"

"I don't understand your school work at all, relo!"

"Please?" She blinked rapidly in her attempt of puppy eyes, hands clasped in front of her chin.

There was a long period of silence, neither of them willing to give in.

"Guh…fine, relo."

"Yay!" she cheered, throwing her hands into the air.

"Good, now please let me read, will you?" Tyki asked, finally adverting his gaze from his book.

"Fine…puh."

'He was so much cuter when he was younger…'

Lero stared hard at the piece of math homework in front of him, determination in his empty holes for eyes. They narrowed as he looked down at the desk in front of him as he leaned in. After countless minutes of staring at the sheets of paper, the golem closed his eyes as his body puffed out a little, seemingly ready to yell out in victory.

"I don't understand it, relo!" the golem cried out to the ceiling while Road played with her beat up doll.

"Oh c'mon! It's not THAT hard…" she called back to him

"You're just sitting there so you don't know how hard it is, relo!"

"Fine, I'll come over there…" she groaned, standing getting up from her comfortable position on the floor to sit over at the table her despicable homework was.

She glared at it for about ten minutes.

"Re-"

"Agh, I don't get it! Dammit!" she screeched, her hands scratching her scalp in frustration.

"_A young lady shouldn't curse, Dream."_

"I know that already Lero!" she glared at the golem beside her.

"Eh? I never said anything relo!"

"Eh? Oh…"

The two didn't notice the shadow in the mirror watching them, sadness in her eyes.

"_Allen will save you…she will save you all…"_

The figure faded off as quickly as it had shown up.


	5. Mission: Day 1

**12/28: Sup sups? I rewrote this chapter cause I read through it and thought it was a piece of shit. Here's the message from the last time I rewrote it:**  
**  
Hello~ I did a little revision on this chapter, so I added a little bit more on the end. It's not much, though. I realized while reading it that General Tiedoll had popped into the story without much of an entrance on the train, so I revised that also. I realize how horrible I used to type now...well, that's what improvement is for!**

**Disclaimer: Do I own -Man? No.**

* * *

The sun shone through the window in Allen's bedroom. The birds chirped loudly, as if they were deliberately trying to wake her up. After she could no longer ignore the birds' request for no one to sleep, she groaned and sat up. As she stretched, she remembered and thought about last night. Was her conversation with "Yuuna" real? Or was it shock from realizing that she was…she didn't even want to think about it anymore. But then, she remembered what "Yuuna" had told her that night:

'_Okay then! I'll stick around you! If you wish to talk to me, simply touch a mirror and call my name or talk to a mirror.'_

So, she tested it.

"Um…Yuuna, are you there?"

A black shadow showed up eerily, morphing until it shaped into a human body, then again into that of a woman. The dress formed, then the hair, then the boots, all until her full body formed in the mirror. Her hands were clasped in front of her stomach, white gloves standing out against the black fabric of her dress. High heeled, lace-up boots touched at the heels. White hair curled around her inky face, top had perfectly in place. The white rose on the hat fluttered lightly as she formed completely. Lastly, white eyes opened as evidence of life.

"_Good morning, Allen."_

Said girl could only stand there in shock, eyes wide.

"_Why do you look so surprised?" _Her head tilted lightly to the side.

"I wasn't really expecting anyone to respond…" She blinked rapidly for a second, just to be sure she was actually seeing what she thought she was.

_Yuuna chuckled. "Well, I guess I understand. Are you still sleepy?"_

"Yeah, I am. I want to sleep more." She whined as she plopped her head on her pillow.

"_Well, while you're relaxing, may I tell you something else about your past self?" _ She conjured a white wire chair typically for gardens, then she sat on it right by the mirror.

"Yes. That would be good, I guess. I need to learn more anyway, right?"

"_Okay then. You used to be an engineer. Not as a job, though. You used to create AKUMA."_

"…Wait what? I created AKUMA?"

"_You didn't create the ones that kill. You created the ones that CLEAN. They used to be house maids and butlers before that bastard reprogrammed some of them."_

"Oh. I see. But how did he reprogram them?"

"_Your AKUMA used to be three things: metal, wires, and cooking oil."_

"Cooking oil?" She had begun kicking her legs lightly by then.

"_They ran on cooking oil. Timcanpy is an example of one of the upgraded AKUMA you made. He is: material, camera, and shards of innocence."_

"EH? Where did the innocence come from?"

"_He used to chew on your hand, remember?"_

"Oh. Does this mean that he could upgrade to a bigger body, then?"

"_That is very possible. He would probably have to eat a bit of AKUMA, you know, the ones that have been altered, though."_

"Oh, I see."  
_"As much as I would love to continue talking, you have a mission to get ready for. You haven't packed yet."_

"And whose fault is that," she asked, no real venom in her voice.

"_Oh, and Link will be accompanying you on this mission."_

"Why?" Allen whined.

"_It's because Levrier isn't exactly the most trusting person."_

Ah, there was some definite venom there.

"Dang. Oh well, I guess that it can't be helped…"

"_Oh, wait. I just remembered, silly me," _the young woman in the mirror grinned, _"It seems that I've already packed your bags for you~"_

"Ah, really? Thank you-" the whitette jolted, rising quickly off of her bed, "You can come out of the mirror? Since when?!"

"_Se-cr-et~" _She twirled her right pointer finger in the air, upward half crescents glowing on her face.

"Oh! Well…thank you."

"_You're welcome, Allen~," _ Yunna then turned toward the door, moving a hand up to where her mouth would be, _"Oh! Link's coming. We better stop talking for now."_

"I understand."

All that Allen's response was met with was pregnant silence. When she looked into the mirror, she found that all that she saw was her reflection.

"She must have faded away, already." Allen sighed. Then there was a knock at the door.

"Allen Walker. It's me, Li-"

"Link, I know it's you. I'm coming out in a second."

"Eh-Oh…okay. Just hurry up please."

"Hai, hai. I got it."

After she rechecked the objects in her bag quickly, ignoring the inky head floating in her mirror, pouting, she grabbed her bag and left the room. Before she completely walked out, she turned and looked at her mirror, watching Yuuna mouth words that looked like _"I'll follow you through the mirrors"_. She simply nodded and closed the bedroom door.

It was finally time to go. As they all got organized in the boat, the finder pushed the boat away from the dock. Linali and all of the finders currently in the area wished them good luck from the dock, some waving and smiling, others wearing worried expressions.

Not too long after departure, the exorcists began to converse.

"Moyashi-chan~ Are you ready?" The rabbit-like boy grinned at 'him'.

" As ready as I can be, Lavi."

"Che. Just don't get in the way this time, Moyashi."

"My name is Allen, BaKanda," he countered quickly, glaring.

"Urusai, Moyashi!" Kanda gruffly replied.

"I'm really not in the mood for this, so you will you do me a favor and shut your trap?"

Kanda almost sputtered. ALMOST. Hearing Allen speak to him like that was unnatural. Even Link and Lavi paused for a second.

"Che," he muttered, turning his head to the side.

"Whoa. Is it just me, or did Allen win this round," the redhead asked, eye wide as a saucer.

"I honestly am interested in what has happened while I was gone, now. Allen, had something happened to you?" Link questioned.

"No. Nothing at all." Lavi knew that he was lying, but just stared at him instead of saying anything.

"Mou, Allen, you've been distant since that meeting with Levrier. What happened in there?" Or not.

"Nothing. I feel kinda tired now. I'll take a nap before we get on the train, if you don't mind." With that, Allen laid her head on her luggage and started to make an attempt to take a nap. It was with this, though, that the others realized that something really was wrong with Allen.

* * *

The train bounced up and down as they rode on the train in slightly pregnant silence. Despite the fact that Lavi was trying to start a conversation with Kanda and Link, everyone else remained silent, in their own thoughts.

'Che. Baka Moyashi is obviously angry about something. He's been weird since that meeting he had. I wonder what happened…' Kanda wondered, grumbling a bit after the thought, not knowing why he even cared.

'Commander Levrier said something to Allen and it obviously upset him. Did he talk about the heresy trial, again?' Link suspected.

'MOU! Everything's been tense since that stupid meeting. But Allen was proven innocent for that heresy trial. What is he upset about, then?' Lavi stretched a bit, feeling compelled to move his limbs a bit.

Allen wasn't really thinking anything herself, simply settling with looking at herself… her past self, really. No one seemed to notice that there was a different reflection in the window then Allen's.

Overall, the train ride was a long one.

"Finally~ We're off the train. I thought my muscles were going to turn into ice as stiff as they were…" Lavi beamed, grinning as he stretched in different directions.

"You wouldn't stop your useless blabbering the whole time while on the train, you stupid rabbit."

"Mou, Yuu-kun, you're so mean to me!" the rabbit boy pouted.

"It's KANDA to you, bastard!"

"Demo, Yuu-kun~"

"URUSAI!"

"You two, get yourselves together. There are the lives of many people at stake here. We need to get to our target as soon as possible," Link stated, serious as ever.

He was utterly ignored.

"YUU-KUN~" The boy's arms were flailing.

"URUSAI!"

"YUU-KUN~"

"URUSAI!"

"YUU-K-"

"If I hear 'Yuu-kun' one more time, my head just may explode into billions of bloody chunks of brain. All over the walls and the street and everything," someone stated firmly.

"Hey. Kind of gruesome, Kanda," Lavi replied, a grimace on his face from the imagery.

"I didn't say that," Kanda stated, slight confusion on his face.

When they all looked at Allen, they saw him standing there, arms crossed behind his back, smiling at them close-eyed as if he hadn't done or said a single thing.  
"Do you want something?" he asked, in a most sickly sweet way.

"Uhh…Allen…did you say that just now?" Lavi looked slightly worried.

"Say what?" 'He' was all smiles.

"Oh…well…uh…forget it."

"Oh. Okay then! We should find a hotel around here. It's a market place, after all," the whitette stated, beginning to look around for a place to stay.

"We aren't at Italica yet, Baka Moya-"

"I don't care. We have to rest sometime today, Kanda. We've been on that train all day. Literally. We can find a boat or something for early tomorrow morning. That is, if it's okay with you, Link."

"Ah, well I have to agree with Allen this time," the stiff man stated, looking at him with slight worry.

"Well, Lavi, do you mind going to the docks to find out the times for boats heading to the closest place near Italica?"

"Ah, no."

"Kanda, you go with him please."

"When did you start giving me orders, Baka Mo-"

"Please." It wasn't really a request. It was much more of a demand, but the stare he gave him with it would make anyone follow the order immediately.

"…Che."

"Whoa. Did Allen just win again!? Allen, you're on a roll!" Lavi cheered.

"I'll book a few rooms for us at that hotel over there. We can meet up again on the inside, okay?" Allen asked, sweetly again.

"Yes."

"Yes Sir!"

"…"

Allen smiled sweetly then turned around to the hotel with Link following closely behind.

"Whoa, Kanda, he won AGAIN! You're losing your touch."

"No. There's something wrong with him…" he muttered.

'For some reason, he wants to feel like he has a bit of control. He feels as if he has no say in anything and wants to be able to feel strong.'

"Oh. Yeah, I've noticed that he's been weird since that meeting. But other that this time, he's been winning!"

"URUSAI, STUPID RABBIT."

"How did you notice that he was feeling bad, anyway? I though you didn't care."

"I SAID SHUT THE HELL UP."

"AWWW! You DO care!"

"I'm going to castrate you now." He drew Mugen from its sheath slowly, allowing it to gleam menacingly.

"Uhhh…OH there's the dock! We better get going!" He then dashed off like the rabbit he was.

It was finally evening by the time everyone got to their rooms. Allen and Link shared a room while the others shared another room. In Allen's and Link's room, all there turned out to be was silence with a tiny bit of small talk. It was almost completely different in the other room.

"Ne, Yuu-chan, what do you think happened in that meeting room?"

"Like I care."

'I'm not sure, but that Moyashi's insecure about something.'

"You really do care on the inside, don'cha?" he smirked.

"Urusai. I cut you into pieces."

"Oh! By the way, Komui-san told me that General Tiedoll would be meeting up with us once we settled in a bit."

Then there was a knock on the door. Lavi jumped off of the bed and jumped to the door.

"Who is it~" Lavi sang.

"It's me. I've already booked my own room, but it would be nice to see your faces after such a long time." A kind, mellow voice responded.

After unlocking the door, Lavi practically yanked it open to reveal that Tiedoll, all smiles and hugs, had arrived.


	6. Mission: Day 2

**12/28: Okay, so as you probably noticed, I've gone back and redone quite a few chapters. Sitting in an area with next to no internet access really helps the mind work on writing I guess. Anywhozels, the message below is the one I did when I rewrote the chapter the first time:**

**Hello all y'all watchers! I had gotten a review on this story that was basically a critic review, but I really appreciated it because I helps me understand how you view it! I'm the one writing it, so I don't know how you see it. I personally don't like being corrected, but if it helps, I'll accept it gladly! If it's over something stupid, I don't like it. So what I did was redo some of the errors that I found. Thank you!  
Anyway, here's something else that may help:**

"Blah blah" = talking  
'Blah blah' = thinking  
_"Blah blah"_ = Yuuna's talking or a recollection of what someone else said earlier  
"**Blah blah**" = loud yelling/screaming or dark voices (dark thoughts have the ' sign instead of the " sign) or me talking (only at the author's note)  
"Blah blah" = telephone b.k.a usually a golem

**Also, when ever Allen is with herself, with Yuuna, or it's introducing her first in the paragraph, Allen's refered to as a 'she'. Everything else, and Allen's refered to as a 'he'. When everyone finds out that 'he' is a 'she', Allen will be refered to as a 'she' for the rest of the story.**

**Enjoy!**

Disclaimer:** I sadly do not own -Man, but I do own Yuuna! (her real name is at the bottom. I don't own the original **insert real name here** but I do own the concept of the middle name and the way I made her act.**

* * *

"Hahhh…"

"Walker, how many times do you insist on sighing?"

"I'm really not sure, Link…"

"You've been in a bad mood since we left the Black Order. Do tell me what's wrong."

"…I don't…"

"You don't what?"

"Okay, I know that we get along pretty well, but I don't trust you enough to tell you what's wrong."

"What?"

"Just…go to sleep…I need to think…Please?"

"If you insist, Walker." He then lay down under the covers in his bed to sleep.

Allen waited for a few minutes until she heard a very slight snore, letting her know that he was asleep. She walked to her bag, took out a few things, and then walked quickly to the restroom. Along with some of the things she took, she was holding pain medication. It was that time of the month, after all.

"Dear God, I do wish Eve hadn't cursed us all…"

After she finished changing, she walked out to the balcony and stood there, thinking about what had happened over the past few days. The realization that she was the reincarnation of the woman who was the Millennium Earl's ex-wife. The realization that the members of the Noah clan were her…chil…chi…child…ren. Well, except for Lulubell. She was the family cat. But still, it shocked her nonetheless.

"But I feel like I'm forgetting something…"

"_That wouldn't happen to be me, would it?"_

Shocked, Allen turned around and looked at the mirror at the end of the room. Standing inside of the mirror was Yuuna. Allen couldn't tell how she was feeling since she didn't have a face. All that she saw were two white eyes.

"Oh. It's you, Yuuna. Sorry that I haven't talked to you much."

"_It is okay, Allen~ I wouldn't want my reincarnation looking like she needs to go to a psychiatric office!"_

"Haha. Very funny."

"_It is, isn't it?"_

Allen just stared for a second. She then started chuckling herself. "I would look like a fool, wouldn't I?"

"_Allen, what are you so weary about? You haven't been your usual self in front of your friends. Is it that that mask of yours is breaking?"_

"It's been crumbling for a while, Yuuna. Ever since that conversation with Captain Levrier, I've been very tense."

"_You could come into the mirror world with me if you like. It's very relaxing here. Maybe you should give it a try."_

"Wait. I can go through MIRRORS?"

"_Not so loud, Allen. Yes, it's something that you're inheriting from our past innocence."_

"The past me…you…could go through mirrors."

"_Nope, but because I'm this way, I can now!"_

"Well, I guess that I could give it a try, but I have to be sure that Link is asleep."

"_He is. When you come in, the time in the mirror world is faster than the time of your world. An hour here is like a few minutes there."_ For some reason, she seemed to laugh a little when she said that Link was asleep.

"It's the same as the first time I came in there, right?"

"_Yes it is." _Yuuna gave her the best smile that she could._ "I still have things I need to explain to you, Allen."_

After a few seconds of pondering, she walked inside quietly and stared at the mirror for a good few moments. She then stretched out her left arm. Once she touched the mirror, the cross on her arm glowed along with the mirror. She gasped slightly when her left hand sunk into the mirror. She gasped even a little louder when she felt a delicate hand touch the rough, red skin of her innocence hand. After just a few seconds, she brought up the courage to let her whole body sink into the mirror. All that was left was Link, a strangely heavily asleep Link, for that matter.

Mana looked a lot better than she'd ever seen him before. His build was reminiscent of the one he had in the family photo. He wore the same clothes that she'd seen the 14th wear. His face was completely different: though blacked out as always, he had hair again, and his face was no longer that of a skull, though she knew it probably was hidden. His eyes were glowing circles like Yuuna's, but the left one was swirled. Yuuna looked a bit better as well, considering she gained a glowing mouth. The mouth was open in a grin.

"_Welcome to the Mirror World, Allen-chan!" _she proclaimed, arms open in presentation of the area.

Mana simply nodded. He was the quiet one, after all.

"Allen-chan?" she asked, a small blush coming up on her face.

"_I thought that your name sounds cute with a 'chan 'at the end. You know, just like in Japan!" _the cheerful woman beamed, hands clasped together as she spun a little. Mana nodded.

"Y-yeah I guess. How have you two been?"

"_We've been fine. I do need to tell you more about our past, though…"_

"Ah yeah…I almost forgot… What else is there?"

They walked through the Mirror World for a place to sit. The sky was grey, like it always was there. No wind was blowing. There were ruins that looked like it had belonged to a large city all over the place. When they walked around, they found an ancient garden with a small, circular stage with a small table surrounded by clear, glass-like roses. The designs on the white metal chair also looked like roses. There was expensive-looking china on the top of the table. The teapot held steaming tea inside of it that lazily let out a small trail of steam that dissolved when it got higher into the air. Mana stepped ahead of the other two suddenly. Then, like the gentleman he was, pulled out the chairs for both Allen and Yuuna. When they sat down, he pushed them in and poured everyone some Earl Grey tea, which only seemed to add to the melancholy atmosphere. After settling and a few sighs of relaxation they started their little meeting.

"_Where were we last time? Oh yes, you accepted his offer to get married. You eventually had children. The first one was named Dream, her nickname is Road as you probably know already. Then it goes in order from there."_

"Let me guess. The second child was Pleasure aka Tyki, the third was Bond aka Jasdero and Debitto, and the last one was Wrath aka Skinn. Oh, and Lust aka Lulubell is the family cat. We had weird names for our children, didn't we?"

"_I believe so. It's nice that you remember all of this!"_

"Yes, I thought of it for a while. But what made everything go bad?"

"_Oh…well you used to make AKUMA. Not the blood-thirsty AKUMA that we see today, but they did house chores. I believe that I told you this before. You had allowed James to see one of your prototypes. He apparently tested on it and decided that your AKUMA had a greater evil purpose. You had already left the house with Road on a short walk. You two used to enjoy each other's company. With her being the only girl, you wanted her to be able to learn a few girl things even though you were a bit of a tomboy yourself."_

"Yeah. I'm just glad that I had turned my head when she tried to kiss me in the Ark."

"_Yes, I guess that is girl stuff, isn't it? Well, anyway, when you returned, you found that he wanted to use all of your AKUMA to take over the world. He had already started in Edo. You weren't aware of this because you were taking care of the children. When you two returned along with Timcanpy, Mana , and Lero, he had hypnotized the other children. He said that he wanted you to keep making AKUMA in order to continue the plan. You refused and tried to reason with him, but he was already too far gone. He got angry with you and planed to destroy you. With this, he completed his contract with Satan and became the first Dark Matter holder, the opposite of innocence. He gave you one last chance to change, but you refused. He began fighting you even though all that you had to fight with was a sword that you had made one day just for the sake of creating things. The instant you made your first cut on him, you were blessed with the first innocence, Aion, the Crowned Angel. But with it being a parasitic innocence and you had gotten your innocence late, he won. By then, you were on the ground, breathing your last breaths. Dream sang the song you made for the last time with you. You died after James closed the door to the room he led Dream into. Timcanpy flew away and went into wandering for many, many years before finding Cross. Lero was forced to stay behind with James, and from what I've seen, he still has his memories. Mana held on to your song. As you know, the children are still brainwashed by James. Lulubell also was brainwashed…have you heard enough?"_

"…I…I don't know. I-I held the first innocence?"

"_Yes, and you still do. There is a reason why you have that hole in your heart, after all."_

"But that's a wound that Ty-…Pleasure gave me…"

"_No. He just reopened a wound that was there before. It's destiny. Your first innocence was in your heart, after all."_

"Wh-what do I have to do…to reassess Aion?"

"_You must reach the highest synchronization to your innocence possible. Once you reach it, you must surpass it. It's almost like becoming the innocence yourself once you are Aion. It won't be as easy. First you have to get to 200% synchronization. Your almost there, to be exact."_

"Eh?"

"_You next innocence will be Crowned Rose. I have yet to figure out what the innocence is like, but it will take up a lot of energy if it is used for a long period of time. Please be prepared, for you may access it during the battle that is sure to happen while you are here."_

"Thank you…but I have a question…"

"_Yes?"_

"How do you make AKUMA? I think that I could put it to use sometime."

The woman stared at her wide eyed for a second before she giggled.

"What is it?" she asked before sipping again at her tea.

"_We always have had such great ideas, haven't we? What is your plan?"_

"I want to create ANTI-AKUMA. That way, there will be fewer to no fatalities when other exorcists go out to battle AKUMA."

"_That's not a bad idea, actually. Maybe some other time, though. The drugs I put into Link's drink a dinner may be wearing of-oops…I shouldn't have said that…"_

"You DRUGGED Link?!" she exclaimed, startled by the news.

"…_Yes," she replied sheepishly, scratching the back of her neck._

"Two things. One, why didn't I think of that?!"

"_Te he~"_

"Two, how did you get out of the mirror anyway?"

"_You are getting stronger. Strong enough where instead of simply being in the mirrors, I can hide in the shadows. I can't stay out of mirrors for long, but I'm progressing~"_

"Oh! Well, that's good then…so…do I head back now?" she asked, standing from her chair, thanking Mana silently as he pulled it out for her.

"_That would probably be the best if you did."_

"Alright then. It was nice seeing you. Goodbye, Yuuna, Mana," she replied, walking away from them to the black bordered, full-body mirror that sat at the end of the pathway she had come up before.

"_Goodnight, Allen-chan~" _Mana waved back.

* * *

Allen walked back to the entrance to her world. She looked back for just a second to see the two waving at her, and she found herself smiling a little bit and waving back. As she walked out of the mirror, she though for just a second, realizing that she felt something while being there. Chuckling, she realized that Yuuna was right. Though the place was quite melancholy, the Mirror World was quite a calming place.

Upon returning from the Mirror World, she saw Link still fast asleep. Sighing, she walked over to her bed to get to sleep herself. But just before she climbed under the covers, her AKUMA eye activated and she looked far out the window, detecting AKUMA that were far away towards the ruins.

"Why am I seeing AKUMA so far awa-"

Just then, she saw the soul of one particular AKUMA start to change into a more distorted form than before. It looked absolutely distorted, crying out to the heavens. The AKUMA was leveling up in before her eye. As she witnessed the horrible transformation, Allen clutched her stomach and mouth, bile rising in her throat. She saw the soul being twisted and turned beyond all repair. It was stretched to fit the new body, the devilish cherub's growth spurt causing massive amounts of pain. The creature grinned. Allen could stand to hear the screaming or witness the torture no longer.

She promptly retched where she stood.

* * *

'Why am I thinking about the moyashi right now? I feel like something bad is happening…'

Upon thinking this, he heard a loud thump in the other room. It was so loud that Lavi woke. They could hear footsteps headed to the boy's room, most likely Tiedoll's.

"Oi! What was that, Yuu-chan?"

"It came from that Two-Dot's and that bean's room. And DON'T call me by my first name, you stupid rabbit."

"We better get over there. That sound certainly wasn't a soft one," Lavi stated, jumping off of his bed to open the door.

The two met up with Tiedoll at the front of their door. The older man's expression was less than pleased.

"Allen-chan, Two Dot, are you two okay in there?" Lavi asked, knocking.

No response.

"Oi! Moyashi, respond!"

All Kanda received as his answer was a silent sob.

"We need to get in there. Now." Tiedoll stepped up to the door and unlocked it. Upon entering the room, they were met with the worst thing that they'd seen since they all started the mission. Allen was sitting by his bed with his back turned to everyone. The moonlight from the almost full moon looked almost crimson. It shined on his hair, seeming to only make him look smaller and frailer. The smell coming from the room was beginning to become more prominent. You couldn't really pinpoint what it smelled like, but it was quite rotten. Lavi ran to his friend's side to assist him in any way that he could.

"Allen! Are you…guys, he puked on the floor."

"Moyashi! What the fuck is-" Kanda had to pause after he turned to face him.

When Allen turned around to him, Kanda saw tears in his eyes and tears cascading down his face. His blackened left hand covered his mouth where the quiet sobs came out of while his right hand kept him steady on the ground. He looked absolutely miserable just sitting there. Just then Kanda noticed that his left eye was black with red rings in it. His curse had activated.

"Oi…what did you see?"

"What are you talk-" Lavi tried to say.

"Look at his eye, stupid. He saw an AKUMA."

"Allen-kun, what did you see?" Tiedoll whispered.

"I…it…u-upgr…upgrad..ded…The soul was…the soul was…" Allen could only cry it out.

"What level AKUMA was it, Allen?"

"Al-chan…"

"…Le…level…le…"

"…Oi…please try to answer." Kanda was honestly a little worried right then.

Lavi was shocked when Kanda actually said please. Tiedoll just smiled at how he knew not to yell at Allen when he got like this.

"Level… 4…the soul was…" All he could do after that was sob.

Silence filled the area. A level 4 upgraded. That could only mean that along with the few level 4's that were there, there was a level 5.

"Lavi, take Allen to the restroom and help him clean up. Kanda, I need to talk to you."

"Y-yes sir. Come on, Al." Lavi carefully helped Allen off of the ground and took him to the restroom.

Once they were gone, Tiedoll turned to Kanda with, for once, a very serious look on his face.

"You're thinking about going back, aren't you?"

"Think about it. There is a level 5 out there. Whether it's in the Italican Ruins or not is unknown. For all we know, it could be heading here to us. You're curse isn't healing like it used to, Yuu. Allen is obviously bothered by the soul inside of the AKUMA. Lavi has yet to upgrade the percentage of his synchronization to his innocence. Even you need to upgrade. At the pace that your curse is healing you now, too many cuts can actually kill you. I do not wish to lose anymore of my pupils. I'm scared for us all, but mostly for Allen, to be honest. He's been struggling with some sort of inner turmoil. Being close to an AKUMA that has caused him to regurgitate even though he is possibly hundreds of miles away from it will not be good for him, even if he has over 100% synchronization. We should contact the Black Order and see what they reply with. I highly doubt that they will tell us to move forward."

"I understand, but…che. Just see what they say, old man." Kanda muttered tiredly.

"I will, but right now, Allen needs his friends. No matter how much you two fuss and fight, you are still a friend of his. You should go help comfort him. If not, the least you could do it help clean up the floor."

"Che. Fine. I was planning on cleaning the floor anyway."

No one took any notice to the fact that all that Link did was sleep through the whole thing.

* * *

"Lavi how is he?" Kanda muttered.

"He's okay. He said that he broke down for a moment. All he needs is a little alone time and some rest," Lavi said as he walked out of the restroom, a mop-like cloth in hand.

"I cleaned up already."

"Oh. Good, cause that smell was bad…"

Kanda kept silent.

"I wonder if Levrier mentioned the heresy trial…"

"What if…nah it couldn't be that…"

"What? Tell me, Kanda," Lavi stated, not feeling nearly as jumpy as usual.

Kanda couldn't help but twitch slightly when Lavi actually said his name correctly. He must be serious.

"What if that asshole said that he was going to have the trial after this mission?"

"I don't think so, but…honestly, it's possible."

'It's not, though.'

Just then, Tiedoll walked back into the room. For some reason, he looked very grim.

"General Tiedoll, what is-" Lavi began.

"We must continue with the mission."

"Eh!?" Lavi exclaimed, standing to his feet in shock.

"But you just talked about how dangerous continuing this mission would be! Why the hell would they have us continue on?!"

Tiedoll bowed his head.

"Well…"

* * *

"Hello? Black Order Supervisor Komui. Captain Levrier is also present."

Tiedoll flinched slightly at that information. Nevertheless he stood tall.

"This is General Tiedoll. I have an update on the mission that you sent us on."

"Yes, what is it? Is everyone okay?"

"Well, we could be better. It appears that this mission is more dangerous than previously thought."

"How dangerous is this mission now?"

"Allen has discovered that a level 4 AKUMA has evolved. There is now a level 5 on the loose. Allen was troubled by the stated that the soul was in so much that he ended up regurgitating on the floor. If he were to face it head on, I don't think that he could take it. Lavi has yet to become more synchronized with his innocence. Kanda has the same problem and his curse doesn't heal him like it used to. I'm not sure how strong Link is, but I don't think that he'd be able to take it since he was nearly turned into a doll by an AKUMA before. Level 4 AKUMA are still a pain to destroy. No one knows how much more gruesome it will be to destroy a level 5. I believe that if this mission were to be carried out, that there should be more generals here than these children. I humbly request that we resign from this mission. More advanced exorcists should be here to retrieve this innocence. It's obviously and important innocence. We may be encountering the Heart of Innocence that we have been looking for. To have only us retrieve it will be taboo."

"I see. Please wait a second."

"Alright."

The seconds were almost painstaking. He suddenly felt that he was getting older just by standing there, that was, until he heard rustling sounds on the other side.

"This is Captain Levrier. You are to continue this mission."

His stomach dropped a little.

"Captain. As I said, we are only a few exorcists, most of which haven't even upgraded their synchronization. How are we to-"

"We don't have exorcists to just throw out to assist you. You absolutely must complete this mission if we are to possibly obtain the Heart of Innocence. If we get this innocence, we have a greater chance of winning this war. You must complete this mission. Do your best and retrieve that innocence."

"Capta…he hung up."

* * *

It was silent in the room. The two couldn't believe what they heard. Kanda couldn't believe that that asshole was forcing them to continue the mission even though they weren't suited for the job. Lavi couldn't believe that Levrier was forcing them to continue either, but mostly Allen. He was the one who could see what the AKUMA held in them. If Allen didn't feel good about them and they were far away, what would happen if they got close to it? Their thoughts were interrupted when the restroom door opened to find Allen slowly walking out of it, rubbing his mouth.

"Moyashi-chan! Are you okay?" Lavi asked worriedly.

"Allen, are you feeling better?" Tiedoll inquired.

"W-we can go."

"Huh?" Lavi questioned.

"On the mission…we can go on the mission."

"Allen! Are you crazy?! You're feeling queasy from it now and you aren't even within a hundred miles of it!" the redhead exclaimed, his tone more serious than he'd ever been in a while.

"Allen, I don't think that that is the best idea. As Lavi said, you aren't feeling well. Also, we would need more exorcists to continue with this mission," Tiedoll stated worriedly.

"What are you thinking, baka moyashi?!"

"I…I know that I don't feel well right now, but…we have to…I can't leave that soul in that condition. If I were to do that, I'd be betraying myself…myself and…and…"

"Who else will you be betraying, Allen?! We had a chance of living before when we went on other missions, but this one is impossible. We are sure to die if we-" Lavi began, completely against going.

"No one will die. I won't allow it. I need to do this, no, we need to do this. They said that the Heart of Innocence will give us a better fighting chance at winning this war. I don't want to do this, I wish I could avoid it all together, but I'd be betraying myself, the people who died, the soul inside of the AKUMA, people who I know, and God Himself if I don't go out into that battlefield and at least give it a fighting shot. I promise I won't let anyone die." 'I'll also be betraying Mana…'

"Allen…"

"….che."

Tiedoll was speechless.

"So please…"

"I guess we don't have much of a choice anyway."

"General Tiedoll!"

"Old man…"

"As much as I don't like doing this, it is an order from Captain Levrier…and a request from a headstrong Britain. I believe that we may actually have a chance at this."

"I guess…you promised that we wouldn't die, so I trust you, Moyashi-chan!" Lavi smiled

"You better keep your promise, you stupid bean sprout."

"You guys…yeah, I'll keep my promise! AND MY NAME IS ALLEN, BAKANDA!"

"Hahaha! Here they go again!" Lavi laughed, feeling a bit better about the situation.

"Ha, just like regular times I guess." Tiedoll smiled in slight relief.

"Did I miss something?"

They all turned to the finally awakened Link, who was rubbing his eyes to get the sleep out of them.

* * *

The two residents of the Mirror World sat at the table in the middle of the ruins, their tea misting in the sky.

"_Mana, my brother, do you believe that this battle will begin to awaken the first innocence?"_

He nodded.

"_I believe so, too. I also think that that Kanda person may be a good companion for her~"_

He shook his head.

"_Why not?"_

He stared.

"_Oh yes, you had always been very protective of us, haven't you? We'll, pushing that aside, we need to get prepared. The real battle has yet to begin…"_

The two sighed before sipping their tea simultaneously.


	7. Neah Yuuna Walker

**12/28: I rewrote some shit. Ignore the Republican Party comment in my old author's note. I was sleepy as Hell, just like I am now.:  
**

**Dang this chapter was as long as hell...I had restarted this chapter from scratch yesterday night and didn't stop working on it till 7:21 a.m. today. Don't worry, I fell asleep for a little while when I was working on it, but I'm still tired now. I'm just gonna say a few things before I go to bed today:**

**When a dark-like thing is talking, the " sign will be bolded also. It it's a normal person screaming or yelling, the sign won't be bolded. Also, italics are also used for sounds like **_Crrrrk _**or **_Fsshhhhhhh_** or **_Bzzzzzzzzz_**. I know what it's called, but I really don't feel like trying to see if I spelled it correct, but I'll try. It's used for onomatopoeias. Okay, if I didn't spell it right, sorry. I hope you enjoy the chappie!**

**BTW: Kanda's a bit OOC, but I needed him to be OOC for the scene anyway. For this one, flames will NOT be tolerated. I will use them to burn the Republican Party. If you like that, I'll use it to burn Chuck Norris. If you like that also, well I'll leave Chuck Norris to deal your punishment.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own -Man, but I do own the comfty bed that is calling my name.**

* * *

Everyone was silent in the train car on the way to Italica, Spain. Not even Lavi had a single thing to say. General Tiedoll was more than a little miffed, shown by the frown on his face, that the captain would make them continue the mission. Even if there was the Heart of Innocence where they were going, it was much too dangerous. Had it not been for the orders that Levrier gave and Allen agreeing to it, he absolutely wouldn't be going there now. He wasn't even sure if Allen was completely up to it.

Sure, he had decided to go, but that doesn't mean that he wants to. In fact, as they slowly got closer to the very destination that would surely start a bloody battle, he could see Allen's shivers racking his body faster and faster.

He looked very pale and sick. How he even managed to ride the train without regurgitating was a wonder to him. It must be the power of mental will. The same will that helped Allen become stronger than any other exorcist that had been at the Black Order in the period of time that he was there. The look on his face when he said that no one would die couldn't help but make him trust him. After all, Allen wasn't known for lying unless he was playing poker.

But just then, Allen got a strange face. He stood up quickly and ran out of the train car.

"If he keeps throwing up like that, he'll get worse." Lavi muttered worriedly.

"He's trying to be as strong as he can, but I've been taking glances at his cursed eye. He's been seeing this Level 5 for a little bit on and off for a while now." Tiedoll stated solemnly.

"Mou...I guess that eye is a bad curse after all."

"I can tell that he's trying his hardest, but I can tell that he's the worst off of any of us."

"Allen…"

"I'm going to walk a bit." Kanda mumbled as he stood up.

Lavi and General Tiedoll watched him as he left them alone in the car. For a bit, the only noise in the lonely car was the rumbling of its movement.

Suddenly, there was a loud sigh.

"Oh! Two-Dots! I hadn't noticed you there!"

"…Neither had I." Tiedoll said, half way in deep thought.

"I've noticed," Link replied, more than a little indignantly.

"I thought you were supposed to be following Al-chan around."

"Well, I am, but if Kanda-kun is there with him, it should be fine." Link huffed feeling drowsier than he ever had for quite some time.

* * *

Allen felt horrible. She couldn't keep her food in her stomach at all. Her innocence needed food and fed off of her energy, so if she kept throwing up like this, she knew that it would be bad.

"Allen."

She turned around upon hearing the deep and unusually mellow voice of Kanda, honestly surprised that he didn't call her 'moyashi'.

"What do you want, Kanda-"

"Stop it."

"…eh?"

"Stop trying to be strong for everyone. We all know that you're struggling," Kanda all but growled, looking away.

This shocked Allen beyond all belief, "…what are you saying, Kanda?"

"You can depend on us also. You don't have to carry everything by yourself…"

'Ahhh, I'm really not used to this shit…'

"But Kanda, I-"

"You're always like that. You always want to carry things by yourself."

"You're one to talk," 'he' replied, frowning.

"Not everyone can be like me, Allen." Kanda looked at him once again.

"But maybe you shouldn't carry things by yourself all the time, also. Who should you really be talking to, huh? I'm used to doing this…"

He glared, getting impatient with his insolence, "We apparently both are used to it, but I know that you can't do that any longer."

"What do you-"

"You haven't been able to hold food in your stomach since last night. Look. Even now, your cursed eye is seeing the AKUMA…"

Sure enough, Allen's cursed eye was black with red rings in it. 'He' was looking a bit pale also.

"…Kanda…"

"What do you want n-"

"Another one evolved just now…"

"Shit…I have to te-"

Kanda didn't even finish the sentence when Allen blacked out.

* * *

It was cold. Well not necessarily, but it seemed like it was cold. She was wearing a loose, white dress. It wasn't frilly or anything. It was just a simple, cotton-white dress with wide straps going over her shoulders. Allen felt like she was floating in darkness. She was touching nothing and nothing was touching her. Her eyes felt as heavy as lead and her body felt limp. As she floated aimlessly, she felt a hand on her shoulder, finally feeling something in that empty place. The hand soon became two and she felt herself be pulled against someone's body.

'…Yuuna,' she groaned, her eyes still closed.

"_Allen…"_

'Where am I…'

"_You fainted, Allen. You are in your mind. It seems that you cannot think of anything right now…"_

"…I feel cold…" She muttered as she snuggled into the seemingly warm chest of the woman holding her. Yuuna, in turn, held on tighter to her.

"_Imagine something then, Allen. This is your dream."_

"Dream…?"

"_Yes. In order to be in your mind, you have to be dreaming…dream something warm, Allen…" _the woman replied, consoling the girl softly.

So she tried it. As soon as she thought of something warm, she thought of her bed at the Black Order. About how, in winter, she would snuggle into her covers and sleep as much as she wanted until she was notified of her next mission or got up to do something else. She was very vulnerable to cold, after all. White hair hardly held in heat at all. But somehow, the bed sheets under her black comforter would always keep her warm in her cool room.

As she thought of these things, a bed with a black comforter appeared in the nothingness. Yuuna, seeing the bed, slowly floated over to the bed and tucked Allen as she lay above the bed sheets. Allen's eyes were still closed and she looked as if she were asleep. Yuuna smiled for a second as she watched her. Suddenly, Allen asked a strangely unusual question.

"…Yuuna…is that your…real name?"

Yuuna froze. Then she smiled yet again.

"_No. It is not my first name. I've been waiting for you to ask that question."_

"…Why did you lie to me?"

"_I knew that the instant you started remembering about the past, you would question my name…your synchronization to your innocence is improving, Allen."_

"…What does my…no…our innocence have to do with anything?" Allen turned her head to Yuuna, eyes still closed.

"_It is one of the only things connecting us with each other, Allen. Had you not had your innocence…I wouldn't be here. You wouldn't be yourself as you are now."_

"…Yuuna…"

"_Yes?"_

"…I'm scared…I want to save the AKUMA's soul but…I'm really scared…" Allen muttered as she started shivering.

"_I know, Allen,"_ Yuuna whispered as she joined Allen under the covers and hugged her reincarnated self to her own body, softly caressing her head, _"…I know…"_

All that was left then was the empty noise of two people, one breathing, one not.

* * *

Kanda was concerned and conserved at the same time. He was concerned that while the train ride was almost over, Allen had yet to wake up, but he was conserving his vocal worry for another time…not that he was worried for the guy anyway. With his arms crossed over his chest and a frustrated look on his face, he watched Allen continue to sleep on the seat beside him. Sitting across from him on the other side of the walkway, both Lavi and Tiedoll were with Allen, mumbling softly to each other about the situation. The only thing that Kanda could register was the mission is a suicide mission. The Black Order is sending them to the Italica Ruins to die. Had he not been in such deep though, he would've heard Lavi calling his name.

"Kanda." Lavi whispered for the final time.

"Huh?"

"Would you watch Al-chan for a second while General Tiedoll and I go get something to eat?"

"…Che, whatever." Kanda noticed that Tiedoll was strangely more silent, and Lavi, a lot more serious.

"Thanks. I'll bring you two back something also." With that, Lavi and Tiedoll stood up and left the car to the food area.

After the door to the car shut, Kanda moved over to the side where Allen was resting. He sat in the seat across from him, where the other two exorcists were just sitting. As he watched him, the sun came in from the window and shined on him. Once again, within the last 24 hours, Allen looked small and frail. It was as if he were a glass ornament. One wrong move and he would shatter. His hair glowed a little lighter and his skin looked creamier than it had for the last few hours. His black eyelashes stood out on his light skin and seemed to be even longer than they usually look. His white hair was curled around his head on the seat he was sleeping on, making some sort of pseudo halo. Overall, I someone other than Kanda was sitting where Kanda was sitting, they would surely want to jump him. But Kanda, having good sense, kept his place.

"He's a guy anyway, stupid moyashi."

'He's way too defenseless when he's sleeping.'

He shook his head to rid himself of the thoughts.

Then Allen began to shiver. Kanda wasn't sure why, but he looked like he was having a nightmare. His hands gripped the seat he was laying on tightly and he let out a pained groan.

"M…M…Mana…"

'Mana,' Kanda thought, 'who is that man anyway?' He suddenly thought about how little he knew about Allen. Surely, he would ask Lavi when he got back or Linali when they got back to the Black Order. Maybe Allen would've told his friends about his life.

"Mana…I'm…I…I'm sorry…" Allen groaned again, turning slightly in the seat.

All that Kanda could do was listen quietly, curious of what he was dreaming about.

"Mana…I…don't…please…don't die…"

His shivering was slowly escalating and he was clutching tighter to the seat very tightly, so much that Kanda thought that he may rip it. His mumbling began to come out faster and more strained.

"No…ana…Mana…I'm sorry…don't die…no …no…**no**…**NO!**"

Suddenly, Allen's blackened hand began to glow and a white cape began to develop around him.

'His innocence is responding to his dream…!'

Out of nowhere, Kanda jumped up out of his seat and ran to where Allen was and held him by his shoulders and shook him. Allen began pushing against him, still screaming.

"NO! Let me go! I'm sorry! PLEASE!"

"Wake up! It's a dream, baka moyashi! Wake up, dammit!"

When Allen stopped pushing against his chest, Kanda looked at him. His eyes were dazed but wide open, as if he were half asleep. Tears were streaming down his slightly flushed face from crying. His breathing was quick and erratic, but somehow, he remained still in his hands.

"…What?" Allen whispered.

"Look, whatever happened, it's not your fault!"

"Yes…yes it is! He died and I…I couldn't stand it…"

"…What are you talking about?" Honestly, Kanda hoped that he wasn't saying what he thought he was, but he listened. It seemed that he would finally find out what happened to him.

"Mana…he took care of me…li-like a father…and he…he got hit…by a carriage…trying to save me from getting…r-run over…I…I couldn't stand it…h-he told me to m-move forward…but…I couldn't…I just couldn't…so…I brought him back…"

Kanda sat in shock, still holding on to his shoulders as he sobbed and told him his story.

"This man…he promised me…that h-he would bring Mana back…that I…I could see Mana again…but…h-he…he lied to me…Mana came b-b-back but…Mana…he…he wanted to KILL ME!"

"Allen…"

"Then…he…h-he cut my left eye…and kept saying…he'd kill me…but…my hand…m-my hand killed him instead…I…I brought him back…just to die by my own hands…to kill my own caretaker…"

"Where are your real father and mother?" Kanda asked cautiously.

A look of solemn malice came over his tear-streaked face.

"They…never wanted me…this hand…a-all because of this hand…t-they didn't w-want me… they…t-they threw me out…to die…a-all because of this h-hand…they couldn't love me…"

Kanda saw red. He didn't understand why he was caring so much, but hearing that Allen was thrown out of his own home and couldn't be loved because of an arm made him angry. He had heard stories of families who couldn't have children, and that family threw him out like a bag of trash. He gripped Allen's shoulders just a slight bit lighter as Allen sobbed so that he could move them a bit.

"…I'm horrible…" Allen whispered sadly.

'Eh?'

"My own family didn't want me…I killed my own guardian who loved me…I'm absolutely horrible…I…I don't deserve anyone's love…"

'That's not true, idiot.' A look of remorse came over Kanda's face.

"…D-don't look at me like that…," Allen muttered, covering his face in his hands, "I…I don't deserve your sympathy… let go of me…"

"No."

"Don't look at me…I'm horrible…let me go…I'm…"

"No." Kanda began holding him closer.

To be honest, he wasn't sure what he was doing, but somewhere deep down in his heart, he was led him to do what he was then.

"No…let me go! Let go! I'm horrible, dammit! Let me go!" Allen had begun struggling.

"No…" Closer…ever so closer…his arms began to wrap around Allen.

"Don't hold me! Let me go! I'm absolutely awful…I-I said let go! Stop!" Allen began to push against his chest to get away from the hold that he was being pulled into.

"No. Shut up and let me hug you." He held Allen in a hold that no matter how much pushing he did, he just couldn't escape it. He was still holding him as his struggling slowed to a stop and his yells became whispers and sobs.

"…Why…why are you doing this to me…" New tears began to run down his face as his right hand came up and clutched the clothes on Kanda's side.

"You are loved by more people than you know dammit… I care about you, okay? I can't stand seeing you cry like this, okay?! Fuck all this…you can't do it by yourself! Let me hold some of it for you, for crying out loud. We all have baggage. Let me carry some for you…che, corny as hell…fuck, I'm not good at this shit."

Allen couldn't find anything to say, staring down at his seat.

"Fuck…well, what do you say, huh?" He looked down at Allen's downcast face.

"…Yuu." He whispered as he looked back up at him.

Right before he flipped his shit, Kanda froze at the sight before him. The sun was once again shining in the train car, Allen's hair glowing once again. But this time, his tears and his skin glowed a beautiful golden yellow along with it. His still dazed eyes were sparkling with tears yet to fall. His flushed face looked even more beautiful as the shadow defined the curves of it. In a matter of fact, his whole body was being defined by the shadows that the setting sun caused. His lips looked even more attractive than before with their light pink tone combining with the orange of the car. He looked so much like a small doll… And the way that he had said his name with the silent whisper like an appeal for comfort…

No longer being able to look at the scene in front of him, Kanda turned to the side facing the other seat. He pulled Allen to his side, grabbing the fallen cover along with him.

"You're still half asleep. Go back to sleep. The train ride will be over soon, so get as much sleep as you can, idiot. You're still sick."

Not bothering to complain with the taller, more muscular teen, he snuggled into his side and relaxed. Not long after closing his eyes, he fell straight to sleep. Kanda looked to him, quickly turning away and regretting it when he saw his drying tears on his reddened face, his slightly open lips, glowing white hair, and the small frame of his body molding perfectly with his. Then there was only one thing going through his mind at that moment:

'Fuck, this runt can make a strictly straight guy go gay in a second…'

He resisted the urge to bash his head into something at the thought.

* * *

When Lavi and Tiedoll returned, they saw the most adorable thing they thought they'd never see. Kanda was sitting up with his head bowed slightly in sleep. One arm was on his left leg, the other arm was draped around Allen. Allen still had tear marks on his face and he was still a bit red from the crying. His and Kanda's bodies were like puzzle pieces that fit together perfectly. The sun glowed on their bodies, making the scene look even more beautiful.

Just as Lavi was about to squeal from the scene, he got a shush sign from Tiedoll and smiled as he motioned to put the food down. He nodded eagerly. Once they did, Tiedoll grabbed his sketch book, walked to the other side where Kanda and Allen were, sat down, and began to sketch the scene in front of him. Lavi sat down along with him and looked in awe at the utterly fluffy display in his sight.

With Tiedoll's awesome drawing skills, the angelic moment was forever caught on paper. He began to color a neatly but quickly as possible, for the setting sun was beginning to fade more as time went on. Lavi could only watch in amazement as the picture that Tiedoll drew looked more and more like what was going on before them. Finally, when he put the pencil down, they both looked at the picture, and then at the fluffiness, then back at the picture.

Lavi nodded in approval with his thumbs up, the biggest grin in the world embedded into his face. Tiedoll nodded at Lavi with a fatherly smile on his face, though he couldn't help but wonder what had caused Allen to cry in the first place. When he looked back over at Lavi, he saw him grab a golem and prepare to take a picture with it while the glow still dwelled. Lavi got ready to duck at the swipe of a certain innocence, namely Mugen, to come at them.

At the sound of the click of the golem, Kanda's eyes opened sharply and stared in a half-asleep, half-murderous daze. Allen just stayed asleep and snuggled into his side a bit more. Then, Lavi put on a look of fake shock.

"Oh Kanda, you playboy! How dare you use your slimy tactics to ensnare innocent little Allen into your clutches! You ought to be ashamed of yourself!" He joked silently.

Tiedoll chuckled as if he were watching kids play around.

Surprisingly, Kanda only made a low growling sound of a warning and narrowed his eyes. His arm around Allen tightened slightly as the sleep began to dissipate from his glare. He seemed not willing to move in fear of waking Allen up, who was oh so comfortably curled up against his side.

"Are you not moving cause you don't wanna wake Al-chan up? Aww, who knew that you could be such a teddy bear, Yuu-chan?"

"Urusai. You and your annoying voice will wake him up." Kanda looked over at Allen.

"That reminds me…why was Allen crying in the first place? How did you end up in that position?"

Lavi, noticing the seriousness in Tiedoll's voice, stopped joking around. Kanda was quiet for a moment before he spoke.

"He was having a nightmare. I tried waking him up and he accidentally told me why he was crying. He was half asleep. He began calling himself stuff like 'horrible' or 'atrocious', like he despised his existence. I was trying to calm him down, so I held on to him. He kept hitting me and telling me to let him go, over and over again, until he got too tired to fight. He asked me something strange though. He wanted to know why I was holding him, as if he were something that shouldn't be held…then, I told him to go to sleep. He ended up knocking out on me like this and I ended up sitting here as his pillow."

Tiedoll and Lavi looked at him, surprised. Allen hated himself? You couldn't really tell. The only time that you could tell that he didn't like some things about himself was when he mentioned it or had his hair covered all of the time when outside with other people. But to hate yourself…that takes more than just white hair, a blackened arm, and a curse mark to develop such a feeling. Especially since he hardly mentioned it, they weren't going to know. But, within one day of being awakened from a nightmare, he revealed how he felt about himself.

"I wouldn't take this lightly at all, Kanda. It's important that you don't remind him of such things right now. We will be fighting soon and he's already in a bad health state. If he is reminded of those emotions on the battle field, it may only make things worse," Tiedoll informed him.

"Oh! What you said reminded me of something. Kanda, you have to wake Allen up. He needs to eat something. We have some food in the other seat on the other side. I'll go get it." Lavi promptly rose from his seat and headed over to get the food.

Kanda sighed. He looked over to his side again at Allen. He looked so peaceful, being asleep like that without nightmares. But, since the sun was now set, he could see how pale he looked and started moving his arm to wake him up.

"Oi, Allen, wake up."

He moaned irritatedly.

"You need to wake up. You need to eat something."

"….mmmmnnn…."

"I brought you mitarashi dango~" Lavi sang lightly.

"….mmmn?" Allen's eyebrows rose slightly.

"Get up," Kanda glared, getting just a bit annoyed.

"….nn." Okay, that sounded like 'no'.

"I'll eat your dango if you don't," he said, sounding completely serious.

"MMMMnnnnnn..." Allen's face scrunched up at that statement.

"Oi, rabbit, pass me some of his dango."

"NNNNNNnnnnnn..." Allen yawned as he sat up from his side.

Lavi was trying not to laugh at how utterly cute everything was. It really proved that Kanda had a slightly soft side after all. But when he tried to give Allen one, a golden orb jumped out of his shirt and began to eat it wholeheartedly.

"Ah, Timcanpy! I didn't know that he slept in Allen's shirt," Lavi said in awe as the golem munched on the delicious treat.

Turns out that woke Allen up more.

"**Timcanpy**...that's my dango…" he muttered, rubbing his eye.

Tiedoll smiled, Lavi laughed, and Kanda stared at him.

'Why was that thing down his shirt anyway?' Kanda wondered. But as Allen rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, he thought about how he had said his name earlier.

"_...Yuu…"_

Shaking his head, he tried to forget how utterly cute he had looked.

Yuuna watched the whole scene from the windows and smiled.

* * *

"_Kanda Yuu…I think that you will be a great person for Allen…"_

Then she slowly shifted from the window back into the Mirror World. Upon entering it, Mana was waiting at the entrance of the portal for her.

"_I'm glad that she finally told someone about what was troubling her. Holding on to something like that by herself is dangerous."_

Mana nodded. Suddenly, he shivered, his swirly left eye twirling to become even more twisted. Yuuna sighed.

"_Another level 4 has evolved, hasn't it brother?"_

He paused for a second before giving her a sad nod.

"_He's moving faster than ever, I see. I do pray that Allen can handle this…they need to return to the Black Order as soon as possible. They honestly need to fight tonight and return back."_

He just stared at her.

"_I know that there is a lot of pressure now, so we need to keep helping Allen as much as we can, okay?"_

He shook his head as an expression of a sigh.

"_Let's move on forward, my dear brother,"_ she said with a solemn smile on her face.

He just tilted his head at her in what was supposed to be a smile back.

Yuuna's smile became warmer as the two walked side by side deeper into the Mirror World.

* * *

Quite a bit later, the exorcists walked carefully through the Italica Ruins. After figuring out that all of the places to stay in the first few cities were full of AKUMA or completely dead, they decided to go to another city, but it turned out that to get there, they would have to travel through the very ruins that they were trying to avoid till later. Allen's eye was activated and he was clinging to himself, as if he were cold. Timcanpy tried to be reassuring and sat on his shoulder, nuzzling the side of his neck with his body. As tempted as he was to jump back into the warmness of Allen's chest, he knew that a good companion needs to comfort his friends when they are in need. Besides, he didn't want 'him' to be scared.

Kanda was constantly looking to his side to check on Allen. He knew that by then, with all of those cities either AKUMA filled or completely dead, that more level 4's had leveled up. And now, they were walking through the very ruins that held the beasts. Well, that's not screwed up at all. And he couldn't help but think of the ever-fading lotus inside of the glass at his room. The thing only had so many pedals left and the curse mark on his chest was almost completely covering it. He knew that he couldn't take as many hits as he usually did, and that made him feel even worse. Now it was a game of chance. Just how many hits could he take before he would be forever dead?

Lavi was quite a bit anxious for more than one reason. He felt bad for Allen, who was currently hugging himself to get rid of the eating feeling that there were AKUMA everywhere. But he was also nervous that his innocence hadn't upgraded. Neither had Kanda's, but Bookman had warned him about his innocence upgrading. He had said that the instant he felt his innocence begin to improve itself, that they were going to leave the Black Order. He did, after all, have duties to attend to.

To be honest, he didn't want to leave. He wanted to stay with his new family. He liked meeting new people as he went on his missions. He liked fighting in the war to make it seem like they had a chance at winning. To have all of that taken away from him was a cold thought that he knew would probably happen eventually. He really didn't want to go and this battle could make him leave.

Tiedoll was more worried about the other three exorcists than himself. He wasn't boastful about his innocence in a way that he knew that he would be alright, but he was worried that, because they hadn't had as much experience fighting AKUMA as he did, that they would die. He knew that Allen had made the promise that no one would die while he was there, but seeing him hold himself because he knew that they were near with his cursed eye, it didn't really make him feel well about the situation. Besides, they were all being forced to do this. Lavi hadn't upgraded and Kanda hadn't either. What's worse for Kanda is that he wasn't sure how many pedals were left on the lotus. And Tiedoll wasn't prepared to lose any more pupils, whether they were his or not.

Elsewhere, gruesome creatures roamed the rocks. There was blood everywhere and disembodied limbs lay in random places. There was a lot of dust and ash that was probably a human before it was shot by an AKUMA bullet. Horrid looking nightmares cackled as they ate a level 3 AKUMA, ignoring its screeching. They were tall and their wings were decaying. The grey beasts looked slightly human, had it not been for their atrocious bodies. They had horns beginning to come out of their heads and talons for fingers and toes. The skull-like faces had sharp teeth coming from their mouths. On their foreheads, there was an upside down red star. Suddenly, some of the grumbling beasts raised their head. After some mumbles and more cackling, the creatures let out an outcry to the other AKUMA near them. Then they disappeared into the sky.

The sound of small, rolling rocks was all that the group heard at that moment. Kanda was on top guard, Lavi was in deep thought, Tiedoll was leading with careful steps, and Allen walked slowly behind Tiedoll, still shivering. It was much too quiet, as if it were the calm before a storm. The black nothingness of the sky had no stars, even though it was an outside, non-polluted area. There was a new moon that fateful night.

Suddenly, Allen's eye began to act up more than before. He saw something heading toward them. But it wasn't just the usual level 4 and below AKUMA. There were other beasts heading toward them behind the group. They were bigger than the others and their souls looked the worst off of all of the creatures heading to them.

The next thing that everyone knew, the small sound of laughing children filled the air and the sound of flapping wings reverberated off of the rocks that they stood on. The exorcists looked to the sky in shock.

"…Everyone…"

All eyes went to the back at Allen. His face was solemn as his left eye bled slowly.

"…They're here."

* * *

Back at the Black Order, everything was as normal as usual.

"Brother, where are Allen, Kanda, and Lavi?" Linali inquired. She was never informed of where they went. She just knew that they were gone.

"They are on a mission in the Italica Ruins. There had been high AKUMA rates there and the finders thought that maybe a major innocence was there. They have gone with General Tiedoll, so everything should be fine~ I'm off to do some work in the lab, Linali! Please bring me coffee later!"

He skipped off to the door, but after turning his head, his face fell into a grim expression. In all honesty, after hearing the phone call the day before, he knew that everything wasn't fine at all.

Linali continued working with the scientists and cleaning a few of the eternal stack of papers that lay everywhere in the room. Then, the door to the office opened slowly.

"We're b-back." Miranda mumbled as she entered the Black Order's main office with Krory.

"We've returned. Hello Linali." Krory smiled.

"Welcome back, Krory, Miranda! How was your mission?"

"I-it was successful. We've returned with an innocence t-today." Miranda held her thin hands out to Linali with a glowing green innocence inside of them.

"Wonderful! I'll give it to Hevlaska when I go down to visit her today," she cheered lightly as she carefully took the innocence from Miranda's hands, "There are no serious injuries to any of you…are there?"

"No, we are fine, I believe. Miranda, you're not hurt, are you? Are you okay?" Krory asked worriedly.

"A-ah, no. I'm f-fine," she replied, blushing.

'I wonder why he's always like this around me…he cares so much.'

"That's good to hear. Hey, Reever, will you call the finders in Spain? I want to see how they're doing before I go down since you're already at Komui's desk," Linali requested, slight concern on her face.

"Oh, well sure, I can do that." Reever said as he set his papers down. He dialed the golem's number in and put it on speaker. What they heard is something that they wish that they hadn't.

"….gah…uh….ahhhhggg!...grahh…help…naagghh!...agh…..wai…ALLEN!...they've…aght…me...help…gaaagh….nagh…..ghah…na…ca…call helppp…helAAAAAAHHHHHGGGGG!"

Miranda felt tears slowly run down her face. Krory stood still in shock. Half of the scientists in the room were standing up and had panic in their eyes. Linali tried her best not to accidentally crush the innocence in her hands. But no one was prepared for the voice that came on after the cries for help ceased.

"…**Hello…itty bitty exorcists…your finders have been put to good use now…I shut them up for you…isn't that great? Oh, but don't worry…your other friends are next…AAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH-****"**

Nothing else but the dial tone.

* * *

The battle was ghastly at best. The blood of the newly fallen finders was splattered on the rocks. Tiedoll's Maker of Eden was activated, but not too much damage was being done to the amount of AKUMA that was constantly swarming in. Kanda's Hell Insects didn't do much for the amount of AKUMA that surrounded them as he tried to avoid taking too heavy of attacks. Lavi was constantly struggling to not be surrounded in AKUMA as he used Ōzuchi Kozuchi to defend himself. Allen was doing the most damage overall, but with the amount of level 4's that kept piling in, no one could really tell.

"Energy Arc!"

"Hi Ban: Gouka Kaijin!"

"Kaichū: Ichigen!"

"Maker of Eden: Art!"

All of these battle cries among others were heard repeatedly as the deadly blows were dealt, but the vast wave of AKUMA just wouldn't stop.

Allen was jumping from one level 4 to the next. They constantly made scratches at him as he ran through the crowd. He sliced one in half before ducking to avoid the attack of another one. Then, coming back up, he sliced one of their arms off before slicing through the leg of another.

The fire snake that Lavi was releasing was starting to do less and less for him. As he cried outMoku Ban: Tenchi Bankai, he cleared some of the AKUMA and clouds out of the way, only to reveal more of them waiting higher in the sky.

Constant attacks on Maker of Eden were making it hard to continue making more of them. His innocence was draining his energy quickly as the blows to his innocence came one after another. He looked over to the pupils only to see that they weren't much better off.

Kanda was beginning to weaken from the constant blows to his body. One after another, the level 4 AKUMA's hit him with blows that he was sure was using up his curse. Back at the Black Order, he knew that the lotus petals were falling and withering. He didn't have much longer to live. He continue battling though, using Shouka as much as he could.

Lavi's skin was beginning to take on the look of being cracked. He was reaching the peak of his abilities and would soon self-destruct if he didn't take a rest. Finally after attacking for so long, his fire snake dissolved into thin air. With a pained cry, he suddenly collapsed.

Upon seeing this, Tiedoll immediately activated Embracing Garden to cover Lavi and himself.

"**Allen! Kanda! Hurry over here!**" Tiedoll yelled as loud as he could.

Kanda turned for a second to Tiedoll, getting ready to run to him when an AKUMA different from the rest of them came down with a sharp slash to his chest. In his mind, Kanda could've sworn that he saw the last petal of the lotus fall and wither.

"**KANDA!**" Allen cried out upon seeing him fall to the ground. He began a mad dash to make it to him, but as he did, another one of the strange, new AKUMA came down and blasted an attack at Embracing Garden. The blow was so harsh, the general collapsed onto the rocky ground, half unconscious. Embracing Garden dissipated into white smoke. General Tiedoll had also reached his limit.

"**General! Lavi!**" She began to cry, tears streaming down her dusty cheeks. Only a few steps away from Kanda, she felt a sharp jolt shift through her body as she collapsed. When she opened her eyes after having fallen to the ground, her innocence was deactivated with only the cross glowing.

'…I must have reached my limit…'

She found that she didn't have the strength to pick herself off of the ground as the jolts continued to move within her. She crawled, gasping in pain, over to Kanda and picked his head up off of the ground. His eyes were closed and he was hardly breathing. Looking over at Lavi and Tiedoll, watched as Lavi lay still on the ground and Tiedoll failed to keep conscious any longer. Suddenly, she felt a large thump on the ground in front of her. When she looked forward again, standing right there was a level 5.

"**Well, well, well. What do we have here? It's a little exorcist child," **it spoke, a terrifying smirk on its face.

Allen painfully brought Kanda's head to her body, not being able to move much. She looked away from the AKUMA for a second to stare at Kanda's limp body. Then, with an empty expression, she stared back at the level 5.

"**You look like you're in pain, little piggy. Don't worry," **it sneered as it grasped her face in its pointer and thumb talons, almost drawing blood,** "You'll be out of your misery soon, too. Just like those delicious finders from earlier. But first, you must give me that body you're holding so that I may eat it."**

Instead of obeying the AKUMA, she clutched Kanda's head a tad bit tighter and pushed it to her chest.

"**I don't believe that you are deaf, piggy, but I shall repeat myself. Give me that body so I can eat it."**

Once again, instead of obeying it, she clutched just a bit tighter. She then painfully moved her arms and hands to pick more of Kanda's bleeding body off of the ground. Putting her arms stiffly under his arms, she held his upper body to hers, his blood beginning to seep slowly into her shirt. She remained stiff-necked and disobedient.

"**Alright. You obviously want to die by being chewed also. I think that I'll take off an arm of yours first. That blackish one looks crispy. I like crispy pigs."**

It then raised its arm and turned the whole thing into a talon with a stretching grin on its face.

"**BYE BYE, LITTLE PIGGY!"**

Allen's mind was blank. All she wanted to do was protect her family. She wanted to protect Kanda. If she died, how was this supposed to happen? She needed to see him wake up again. She needed to hear him talk to her again. Until this was done, she could not die happy. She hugged Kanda's body to hers in a warm embrace. With her tired body, she called on her innocence once more.

'Please…just this once…if this is the last time you activate, innocence…please…give me strength to help them live. I promised them…that no one would die…I want to keep my promise…so please…'

_Crk!_

Just as the talon was about to come down on her body, the black skin on her left arm cracked.

The instant it cracked, a strange cross covered the now flattened ground below her.

_Crk…_

When she opened her eyes, the left eye began glowing red, her right eye, glowing green. Her hair began floating.

_Crrrrk…_

Mysterious green dust began to come off of the cross below her. When the dust touched a level 4, it screamed in pain.

_Crrrrrrkkkkk…_

Some of the dust began forming petals on each end of the cross in a perfect circle. As more and more of them built up, the level 5 AKUMA in front of her began to sizzle.

_Crrrrrrrr…_

"**AAAGGGGHHHHH! What….WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!? STOP, YOU DAMN PIG! YOU'RE HURTING ME! AAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!"**

She wasn't even looking at it. She was staring at Kanda as some of the green dust surrounded him and some of his cuts began to heal. Turning her head, she saw the same thing happening to Lavi and Tiedoll. The flower then began to close.

_Crrrrrrrrrrrrrr…_

In a mad dash, the level 5 tried to reach up and out of the flower, but by then, too many green dust specks had surrounded it and began eating away at it. All of the level 4's that were inside of the cross died almost instantly after it was activated. The level 4's outside of the cross also began to die from exposure to the dust.

_Crrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr…_

"**YOU….YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS…YOU WILL DI-" **It couldn't finish its sentence before it was split up into pieces and consumed by the dust. The ashes of fallen people began to rush out of the top of the flower as it closed. Allen looked up to the sky. The green circling dust looked like little fireflies floating in the air.

'My old name…'

_Crrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr…_

As everything happened, Allen couldn't help but wonder how the flower looked more like a lotus than a rose.

'…was…'

_Fsssssssssssss…_

The black skin of her arm finally cracked completely, revealing the same creamy skin that was on the rest of her body. Her fingernails were black and she had a glowing green cross on the top of her hand. The ashes that used to be her arm dissipated and flew out of the lotus along with the human ashes.

'…Neah Yuuna Walker…'

Then the lotus closed itself off from the rest of the world.


	8. To Finally Be Rescued

**12/28: Rewrote chappie. What the hell was I eating the day I made this author's note...:  
**

**Sup bishies? Sorry it's late. I've been lazy as hell. X3 Hey, at least I'm being honest. I did at least half of it before the Thanksgiving Break and the other half during it...though, tomorrow I have school again. *sob* Anywho~ I think dis is a good chappie. I admit that Kanda and Lavi are a bit OCC, but once you read the situation, you'll see why. Darn, I'm just hurting Allen now. I feel bad. But, for the sake of building up to the Yullen, which this IS the main paring in this story, Allen will have to hurt. (I sowwy Allen!) Okay, now I'm just being cheezy...=3**

**I don't like flames. They BURN people. The only flames that I like right now are the ones in my fireplace. I DUN WANT YOUR ISH. Any flames will be removed from the review section~ Imma just warn ya of that now. See how nice I am?**

**Yer reviews are appreciated~ NO FLAMIES. but reviews are good~**

**^-^ Now please read while I go off to read/watch some yaoi elsewhere. I'm procrastinating on my homework.**

**Oh! Before anyone asks, Amela and Iglesias are the names of the new finders that you will see in ta future! They are my OCs. DUN STEAL THEM.**

* * *

At the Black Order, everyone was in a panic. After having heard the phone call a while ago, everyone was still trying to get in contact with the exorcists that had been dispatched to the Italica Ruins. No one was really paying attention to the time as all of this went on. Linali was sitting in the lounge couch in the main office, simply being irresponsive. How could she respond to anyone when her three best friends were possibly dead? Still holding the innocence in her hands, she stared at it, looking at how shiny it was.

Miranda was crying for the lost finders and her possibly lost saviors and friends. Krory was hugging her, trying to calm her down, but it was kind of hard to do that since he himself was crying just as heavily. Chaoji was sitting there silently beside Linali, looking for any sign of life in her. He wanted to help her somehow, but was unsure about what he was supposed to do. Marie was listening to the heartbeats of everyone in the room just to make sure that he'd know when someone was going to fall out flat, feeling sorrow in his heart at the loss of his leader and his friend.

The scientists worked vigorously to find some kind of contact point to the exorcists. Komui stood behind them, giving them any instructions that were needed. General Nine and General Sokaro, having just returned to the Order with a new innocence, watched as everything unfolded.

"That idiot Tiedoll had better not be dead." The Mexican general grumbled.

"I'm sure that everything is okay. They may have just lost contact with them." Nine assured.

"No…" Linali finally whispered after having been silent for so long.

Chaoji looked happy for a second before realizing that the look on her face was that of someone who saw a ghost. Marie noted in his head that her heart had started beating just a tiny bit faster. Miranda looked at her, still sobbing while Krory tried to comfort her with tears running down his own face.

"No…something went wrong…that voice…"

"What voice?" Nine asked.

"We tried contacting them earlier through the golem, but all we got…was the voice of a strong AKUMA…" Reever informed them, still working as fast as he could.

"I bet it was a level 4 or-" Chaoji started.

"Level 5." Linali interrupted.

For a second everyone paused, looking at her in shock.

"That voice…was much too gruesome…to be a level 4…it had to be a level 5."

Upon saying this, Komui remembered what General Tiedoll had said in the phone call.

"_Allen has discovered that a level 4 AKUMA has evolved. There is now a level 5 on the loose. Allen was troubled by the stated that the soul was in so much that he ended up regurgitating on the floor. If he were to face it head on, I don't think that he could take it. Lavi has yet to become more synchronized with his innocence. Kanda has the same problem and his curse doesn't heal him like it used to. I'm not sure how strong Link is, but I don't think that he'd be able to take it since he was nearly turned into a doll by an AKUMA before. Level 4 AKUMA are still a pain to destroy. No one knows how much more gruesome it will be to destroy a level 5. I believe that if this mission were to be carried out, that there should be more generals here than these children. I humbly request that we resign from this mission. More advanced exorcists should be here to retrieve this innocence. It's obviously and important innocence. We may be encountering the Heart of Innocence that we have been looking for. To have only us retrieve it will be taboo."_

Now thinking about it, this was the captain's fault. It was that man that had told the exorcists to continue on, even with the danger of an AKUMA that had never been seen before. How strong was that thing supposed to be anyway? It was most likely stronger than a general. If they were still having trouble with a level 4, a level 5 could without a doubt knock out a general. And those innocent exorcists were there, too. He thought of Lavi, Kanda, and Allen, their faces flashing in his eyes. Mostly Allen's face flashed though. He remembered how Allen could see the souls inside the AKUMA and how he had heard that he threw up just from seeing the soul change though they were several hours away from the place. He himself was starting to feel a little bit sick, but he stood he ground and continued giving orders. But suddenly, Allen began popping back into his mind for a whole different reason.

All of the exorcists in the room felt a pulse go through them. The innocence around Linali's ankles began to glow along with everyone else's innocences. Suddenly, a loud, rumbling groan came from where Hevlaska was held.

"Wha…what's going on with them?" Johnny asked in shock.

"Why? Why am I thinking of Allen?" Chaoji shuddered.

After thinking for a second, Komui watched as Linali and a few of the other exorcists unexpectedly stood and ran downstairs to Hevlaska's chambers.

'It couldn't be…' he thought, 'He couldn't have upgraded again…could he?'

Komui then rushed after them with Reever watching his back disappear behind the door.

"OOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHH…." Hevlaska moaned in what seemed to be pain.

"Hevlaska! What's going on?! What's wrong with Allen?!" Linali screamed as she approached the rail that separated the other members of the Order from her.

The other exorcists stopped not too far behind her. Nine watched and the others watched as Hevlaska writhed in agony. When Komui ran in, she had already begun talking.

"His innocence…his innocence…I feel it! The cube and the other innocences inside of me are responding to its power! Your innocences also feel it…OOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHH…"

"Why is it like this?! How is this possible?!" Komui yelled.

"…His innocence…it's…the…heart…" she whispered.

"What?" Chaoji asked.

"His innocence is the Heart! He holds the Heart of Innocence! One of its true forms has awakened! It's not completely awake…but…surely…he holds the Heart we have been looking for!"

Nine smiled while Sokaro grinned. The Heart of Innocence was finally found. The innocence that they had been searching for all that time had finally appeared. Sokaro began to cackle aloud, showing his joy for knowing that the fun was just beginning.

"To think that that pervert's apprentice held the innocence all along…it's almost unbelievable when you first think of it." She chuckled silently.

Lau Shimin screeched in joy. Marie smiled whole-heartedly. Miranda had stopped crying and looked up to Hevlaska in surprise as Krory laughed in relief. Chaoji looked frozen, but had a small smile on his face. Linali just plain looked completely relieved. That was, until Timcanpy rushed in.

* * *

They watched with mixed expressions on their face as they watched what happened. Timcanpy had recorded everything and was now showing it to the others.

"That huge thing is…a level 5…" Chaoji muttered as they watched Tim look into the sky.

They saw the harsh battle as not even Tiedoll's Maker of Eden could stand much of a chance to it. Then, in the background they saw a fire snake in the background dissipate. Lavi fell to the ground bleeding from the wrists and having a cracked face.

"Lavi-kun…" Miranda sobbed.

Tiedoll activated Embracing Garden to cover himself and Lavi, calling Allen to get Kanda and get over to him.

Then, Kanda got slashed in the chest by a level 5.

"Oh God…Kanda…" Linali muttered.

A very large level 5 then sent a ball of Dark Matter energy at the vines, hitting it dead on. Tiedoll fell to the ground with a loud thud.

"Tiedoll…" Nine frowned.

Allen was almost to Kanda when he suddenly jolted and collapsed to the ground. They watched as he crawled to Kanda, sitting up painfully as he tried to pick him up. Then, the level 5 landed right in front of him. They listened closely to what it said to him, but saw Allen continue to hold on to Kanda with the bits of strength he had left. Just when the AKUMA was about to end it, they saw the black skin on his arm crack as a green cross appeared on the ground below him. Green mist began to come off of the cross, causing the AKUMA in the area pain. Slowly, the petals of a lotus flower began to develop as it started closing. They watched in shock as the level 5 was destroyed almost effortlessly by the mist. The black skin of Allen's left arm broke off completely, revealing the same skin of the rest of his body on it. The ashes of countless dead humans flew out of the lotus as it closed. If you looked closely, you could see him mutter something under his breath. Then, after the lotus closed, Allen looked at Timcanpy and whispered something to him. Once this was done, the video cut off.

They sat in silence, thinking about what they had just seen. Allen's innocence appeared to be a defense mechanism. That mist was still a mystery to even the scientists who watched the video.

"Wait a minute. How could this have happened just now in Spain? It's at least three days away from here!" Johnny spoke up.

"Tim, when did this happen?" Komui demanded.

Timcanpy opened his mouth, displaying said time. It said in glowing white symbols: 3d 23h 54m with rapidly changing seconds.

"How could it have happened three days, 23 hours, and 54-no 55 minutes ago and Hevlaska is just now feeling it?!" Chaoji asked loudly, panic developing in his heart.

"Defense…could it be that Allen sent a wave of innocence energy this way so that the feeling would be more prominent? With it being a defensive mechanism, it may have blocked its connection with other innocences. That, and the distance away that we are from Italica could've affected this. We need to get to the Italica Ruins as soon as possible." Nine proclaimed.

"You're right, General Nine. Linali, please go get some finders and get a truck ready. We need some finders down there as soon as we can!"

"Yes, brother!" Linali ran out quickly.

"What about the Ark? Allen could've accessed that already and be back!" Chaoji yelled, frustrated.

"As much as we would love to do that, Allen may be too weak from having his innocence going constantly for almost four days straight and cannot do it. If he could, he probably would've already done it himself." Komui said softly.

He understood that Chaoji still had doubts about Allen being on their side, but he really wasn't in the mood for it then.

"So, who's wants to volunteer to go?" Johnny asked.

Everyone looked at him except Sokaro and Chaoji. Marie turned his head toward Johnny's voice.

"Oh…um…who's going to go, Komui-san?" Krory asked.

"General Nine, we will need you to be there in case another level 5 comes up. Krory, Marie, and Li-...Li...Linali will accompany you. As much as I don't want to send her, she would be upset if I didn't. I need at least one scientist there to monitor Allen's and the other's health."

"I'll go," Reever yelled as he grabbed his coat.

"This is a rescue mission. Do not stop to destroy any AKUMA unless it is necessary. Be safe, everyone. Now go!" Komui proclaimed with authority.

As they ran off to the truck, they heard Komui scream to protect his dearest sister also.

* * *

It had been seven days. The AKUMA were still around, though it was a lot fewer of them. Allen hadn't had any food for the whole time, for the bags had been destroyed during the main fight. She also hadn't slept a wink since her new innocence activated. Hungry and tired, she still watched over the collapsed exorcists that she had eventually gathered together with her in the middle of the cross within the lotus. She was aware that the green specks that had surrounded her comrades were slowly moving away from them, but she never woke them up. She was very aware that they had been waiting a week for help, but she never complained. But of all of this, she was most aware of the fact that the lotus was slowly becoming weaker as breathing became a task, but she never let her innocence down.

'If they don't get here soon…'

Before she finished her sentence, she felt a bit of movement on top of her lap. When she looked down, a relieved smile came over her face. Kanda was finally waking up.

* * *

'Ugh…my head… Where am I? What's going on? It feels warm here…I don't really want to move from here…it's so comfortable…why? Why do I feel so safe? I've never felt so at ease in my life…who's whispering? Damn, I'm starting to wake up…who the hell is interrupting my sleep…wait…where am I sleeping anyway? I remember that General Tiedoll, that stupid rabbit, and the moyashi were sent with me to the Italica Ruins…but…did we ever get back?'

After procrastinating against his awakening, he finally cracked his right eye open to find that he wasn't facing up, but sideways. He suddenly became aware of many things, one of which included the ever present hand that ran lazily through his hair. He sat up suddenly and looked in the direction from which he thought the hand came from. When his vision cleared more, he was met with a very tired looking Allen. Strangely, his left eye was glowing a dulling red while his right eye glowed an equally dulling green.

"Moyashi…"

"Kanda…you woke up…" Allen spoke in a doting voice that he had never heard come from him before.

"Where are we?"

"Inside of…my innocence." Talk about blunt.

Kanda stared at him, quite confused, "…the fuck?"

"Do you…see this mist surrounding…everyone?"

"…Yeah, I do."

"That's my…innocence."

Allen then held up his left arm. Kanda surely did get a shock from seeing the pure cream skin on the used to be blackened arm.

"Somehow…my innocence upgraded again…"

"How did this happe-"

He would've finished his sentence had Allen not suddenly collapsed onto the ground. Calling his name loudly, Kanda picked Allen's body up. It wasn't until then that Kanda finally saw the extent of Allen's tiredness. His eyes had darkening bags under his eyes, implying that he hadn't slept in a while, his skin, though still slightly creamy colored, was unusually pale, breathing seemed to start to become a task for him, and his body seemed lighter than usual as he held him up as gently as he could. Though he was panting, he could still hear Allen whisper to him.

"I'm glad you're all safe…I'm…so glad…" Allen smiled lightly.

"Oi, idiot, deactivate your innocence," he demanded, though worry lined his voice.

"I can't…"

"What?"

"There's still…so many out there…I couldn't…I just can't…" he replied, his voice becoming airier with tiredness.

When Kanda looked up, through the innocence mist, sure enough, he could see the angered faces of two level 5, three level 4, and one level 3 AKUMA. As he looked closer, he could see that the AKUMA themselves weren't in too hot of shape, either. They all looked as if something had weakened them to the point where if we weren't the ones that they ate, they would surely die. While you can't really tell the condition of an AKUMA by its looks, somehow, he knew that they were deprived of their needed human blood, and with them standing around the floating innocence fragments, it only made their health worse. Of course, they were too stupid to leave, thinking that they would escape probably. But unfortunately, they did do some damage on their side.

Kanda looked around to see Lavi lying close to Allen, part of his face rapped in a bandage. His wrists were also covered. General Tiedoll didn't look much better either. His head was wrapped along with his hands and forearms. Somehow though, they looked a lot better off then Allen did. He knew that this was because Allen had been using his innocence non-stop since he blacked out but…wait a minute…how long was he unconscious anyway?

"Oi, Allen, how long have you had your innocence activated?"

"Uhh…"

"Well?"

"Ummm…" His eyes adverted to the left.

"I'm wai-" Kanda was once again interrupted, but this time, it was because of a groan.

When he looked down, he saw the stirring forms of his general and "friend" starting to awaken.

"Uhh…I feel…I feel…fine actually. My wrists hurt quite a bit, but I feel fine!" Lavi gasped in amazement.

"Same here. I don't feel as bad as I usually would with these injuries. The nurses have done a fine job…" Tiedoll trailed off when he noticed that they weren't, in fact, in the hospital quarters of the Black Order.

He looked to his pupil who was currently holding a quite tired Allen in his arms. When he looked to his red-headed subordinate, he found that Lavi was also in a state of shock, but not at Allen's condition yet. He was staring up at the sky, where little green mist particles danced in the form akin to a lotus flower.

"What on Earth…how did that thing get there? Kanda, what's happening? What are you holding anyway…Allen! Are you okay? Oh gosh, he looks bad! We need medical help here!" Lavi rambled.

"Slow down a bit, idiot! He's avoiding my question. Now tell me. How long have you kept your innocence activated?"

"…If you must know," he looked around at everyone, sweat rolling from his hairline, "…well…a week…"

"A week? Did you just say a whole fucking week?! Have you eaten anything?!" A vein threatened to pop on his forehead.

"No…all of the food was…destroyed in the main battle…there's no food…or water…at all…"

"Dammit, Allen! I know that you're trying to protect us, but you're dying here!" Kanda reprimanded, almost shaking his body.

"…I promised…"

"What?"

He then looked up at Kanda straight in the face. Though his eyes were beginning to unfocus and he looked more fragile than he did on the train, he spoke in a firm voice.

"I promised…that none of us…would die. I intend to…keep that promise as…much as possible. Though my body has…been weakened…I will not die. Please, Kanda. Let me…keep my promise."

The other three stared at him in awe. He was weak in health, but it seemed like his vigor and zeal for what he wants to do would never die.

'Yes,' Tiedoll smiled to himself, 'This child is the Destroyer of Time and a beloved friend to most of the Black Order. Of course he wouldn't give up that easily.'

'Allen…you…you make me never want to leave the Black Order. You really are like a little brother to me,' Lavi thought solemnly.

Kanda smiled a little as Allen smiled back, but the smiles quickly dissipated when a stressed expression overcame Allen's face. As Kanda held him, he could see him gasping as if he were out of breath. He was going through over-exhaustion, and he wasn't holding up well.

"Back up! He needs space to breath! I need a dark cloth also!" Kanda ordered.

Tiedoll, understanding what Kanda was trying to do, found a piece of a towel that he had before and gave it to him. Though they had no water to wet it, it could be used to wipe off the developing sweat off of his face. Lavi felt useless. There was no food he could give him and now Allen was going through innocence recoil. He knew exactly what this meant. Allen was reaching his breaking point.

* * *

The exorcists, scientist, and finders that were currently grouped together as a rescue team happened to be avoiding multiple AKUMA bullets as they rode uncomfortably through the dark, hazy wasteland.

"How far away are we from the Italica Ruins?" Krory asked worriedly.

He and the other exorcists had been anxious since they saw the video three days ago. Timcanpy was sitting in the back of the medical van, growling in nervousness. He had been away from his beloved owner for much too long and wished that he could be there to make sure that 'he' was okay. Besides, he missed sleeping in the warmth of his shirt. Linali's face was stiff and serious as she waited for the back doors to open and let her save them as fast as she could. General Nine sat a little more relaxed than Linali, but she surely was watching the door with a carefulness that only a general could. Marie sat quietly, but was also set to run out; Krory was as set as Linali was.

"We've already arrived. We're looking for them now," a finder in the passenger seat said hurriedly.

They were also worried about the four missing exorcists and wanted to do their best to find them. They had saved them in countless situations and they just couldn't let anyone else die like their finder comrades did.

"Don't worry, Krory. I'm sure that they're alive," Marie reassured him.

"I know, I know. They're okay," he replied quickly. Somehow, he wasn't so convinced.

"No, I'm serious. I'm hearing extra heartbeats."

"Which way is it?" Reever, who was currently driving, called back.

"I hear it…further north. We're heading straight for them."

"Goo-AHG! Damn, I hate these AKUMA!" Reever yelled when the van bounced, barely avoiding another bullet.

Everyone held on tightly to the most attached thing to the van that they could find as hard as they could. But as they continued to ride closer the area for the rescue, AKUMA bullets began to fall upon them less and less until almost no bullets fell any longer.

"That's weird. I don't see that many AKUMA anymore," a finder with a Spanish accent muttered as they looked over the passenger seat to the outside of the window.

"Yeah…all of the ones that I'm seeing now look kind of weak." Reever commented.

"What does this mean?" the finder asked.

"We are getting closer. This may be a side effect of Allen's innocence. You guys saw what happened to your innocences when he let off that big wave of energy from it."

"Guys?" Krory started.

"Who knows how they're doing? But as long as we know that it weakens AKUMA the closer you are to it, they shouldn't have been attacked any longer by any of them. At least that is assured."

"Guys…"

"I'm just glad that there's a chance that they are safe…"

"Guys!"

"What is it Krory?" Reever finally answered.

Krory was looking wide-eyed outside of the side window near Reever himself. Everyone's eyes were on him.

"I don't know how you're missing it, Reever, but look out of your side window!"

When he looked, he was met with an amazing sight. Glowing specks were starting to float directly at the van almost as if they were trying to direct them somewhere or protect them. Soon enough, the specks surrounded them leaving only one spot open to drive through to air. Everyone was silent until Reever adjusted his seat belt tighter, seeming to understand what the specks were doing.

"I'm following it. Hold on tight!" Reever shouted before he drove off at a rapid speed.

It didn't take long for them to finally reach the end of the glowing green tunnel. But once they reached the end, everyone crowed at the front briefly to see something spectacular. Their van sat on the edge of a small cliff that had a small flattened road that lead to the scene. There, in the middle of land after the road seemed to grow in size to fit a whole flat area, there was a huge, glowing green lotus in the middle of it all. Dangerous, unknown AKUMA floated unsuccessfully trying to get in, but every time one tried, some of the green mist would come off of the beautiful flower and shock it. With the horrid cry that it gave off, it seemed like it was quite painful. Everyone understood what kind of AKUMA it was when it cried out. It was a level 5.

"Everyone, I'm going to drive the fastest I have in a while. If you don't hold on, and you fly out a window, I don't think I can come back for you. Do you all understand?" Reever asked sternly, adjusting his seatbelt.

"Got it." Linali replied with the same vigor as he had.

"Roger." Marie said, bracing himself.

"Mmhm." Krory said, not willing to reply.

General Nine remained silent.

"Yes sir!" the finders replied, one tightening their seatbelt, the other gripping the seat in front of them.

"Well then, brace yourselves. This'll be a bumpy ride."

He adjusted the clutch; then they sped off to the rescue.

* * *

Kanda felt miserable. There was Allen, lying on Lavi's lap in the same position he'd been lying on Allen's at least two hours ago, gasping for air. Every other moment, the lotus would flicker just the slightest bit. It was obvious that he would soon be forced to shut his activation by his own body exhaustion. The cloth over his eyes helped him to rest just a little bit, but it unfortunately wasn't much help. Kanda felt absolutely miserable, for he could do nothing but watch him suffer. There was no way that any of them could sooth his pain but make it just a little bit more comfortable for him.

Lavi watched as his "brother" lay gasping on his lap. He knows that he felt small tears begin to fall from his face, but didn't attempt to wipe them. Besides, his wrists still hurt, especially now because of his recent stress and maybe something else. Still, he tried to not pay attention to his own stinging pain, but the pain that Allen was going through that was evident on his face. He looked at the other two that were with him. The General looked very solemn as he was apparently thinking about a serious subject and Kanda was pacing around, stopping to occasionally check up on Allen, then continue to pace. Everyone was very, very stressed. When Lavi heard the heavy footsteps stop, he looked over to Kanda to find him looking at him with questioning eyes. Lavi, knowing that Kanda was asking if Allen looked any better, let his eyes tear up more and shook his head slowly. Even the eye under the eyepatch was watering. At this, he finally knew. No matter how much he wanted to be a Bookman, he had regained his emotions after having met Allen and the others. He couldn't let them go any time soon and wasn't letting go of Allen now.

Something inside him began bubbling in frustration, though he wasn't sure what, and he didn't really care.

Tiedoll watched his direct pupil pace like he never paced before, a Bookman cry, and a cursed boy risk his ever-fading life to protect everyone. This, he had to admit to himself, was one of the most desperate situations that he had ever been in. He told himself that he couldn't stand to watch any more pupils die, whether they were his or not. Allen wanted to keep his promise that everyone would be safe, but he saw the glowing lights flicker and knew what was waiting for them outside of the lotus that he had incased them in for protection. If only he could do something that would help. He thought about using his innocence but knew that if Allen happened to pass out or…die…they would need all of the energy that they mustered up resting within the flower. Allen was using all of his energy to save them and Tiedoll had decided that if he were to pass on, his efforts wouldn't be in vain. Of course, that was just worst case scenario. He had many doubts that the young boy would die. He had lived when his innocence was ripped from his body by a Noah. He had lived through having the very same Noah put a hole in his heart, only to have the very innocence that had destroyed seal it with its fragments. He had survived when the Ark was dissolving and even rebuilt it to where it could be of use. He just couldn't die from this. He trusted the young exorcist.

"L-Lavi…" a strained voice moaned out.

Lavi looked down to his lap quickly to find Allen tilting up, still breathing heavily. Kanda had paused from his pacing and Tiedoll had moved out of his deep thinking.

"Al…len…wh-what…is it?"

"Why…are y…you…crying?" Of course. It was common for him to be more worried about others than himself.

"Allen…you…y-you're…why are you…worried ab-about me?

"Because…yo…you're my…brother…" he gasped out.

"You…you…" His eyes began to tear up more.

"I…pro…promise…I'll k-keep…what I've…s-sa…said…I can't…let a-any of…you…die…"

Tiedoll smiled something akin to what a father would smile, Kanda let his eyes soften a little bit, and Lavi was just about ready to break out into larger tears. Suddenly, Allen moved his head up a little bit and his mouth, though he was still gasping, moved into a small smile. Then he reached his hand out to where he expected Kanda would be.

"K-Kan…da…"

It didn't take more than a few moments for Kanda to grab that hand into his.

"What do you want, you suicidal moyashi?" Though he said it like that, Allen somehow knew that he was only concerned.

"Please…help me…up…"

"Why?"

"Pl…ease…"

Though he was a bit wary about letting Allen get up, he helped him at least sit up anyway. The cloth slipped off of his eyes as he opened them. His eyes were clouded and hazy, the new green and red colors in his eyes having dulled over into much darker versions of the color that they were when the innocence was first activated. He clung unsteadily to Kanda's arm as he drew his other arm around his form to keep him from falling over.

"Why do you want me to…"Kanda trailed off.

When Lavi and Tiedoll listened closely they realized why he had trailed off. There was a slightly distant rumbling sound as if rocks were being crushed and rolled over. A metallic sound also seemed to go along with the rumbling. They paused and all looked at Allen. He was smiling.

"Looks like…Tim…did it…after all…"

"You sent an emergency message through Timcanpy?" Lavi asked.

"Yes…now…p-please get…ready…I can't…k-keep this…up…much…longer…"

With this, Kanda picked Allen up bridal style. Tiedoll stood up and readied his innocence in case an AKUMA came down for a last attack. Lavi began to stand, but when he used his hands, a sharp, stinging pain shot through his wrists and he collapsed again, gasping in pain. When Tiedoll saw this he walked over to the pained redhead and turned around on his knees.

"You look like you could use a ride. Do you think that you could at least climb on?" the General said with a kind smile.

"Yeah, I guess I do need help, don't I?" he replied with a laugh before he crawled onto his back.

There they stood. Four exorcists, two of them were holding the other two weakened ones. Nevertheless, they stood strong. The rumbling came closer and closer until…a van burst into the lotus.

* * *

"Everyone, get ready! We're almost there!" Reever yelled to the passengers.

"Roger!" mostly everyone replied.

"After we get to them, I'll need you to take charge of the wheel, okay?" Reever said hurriedly.

"Yes sir!" the finder replied quickly.

Just then, something seemed to push the van from behind into breaking through a slightly flickering green wall. When Reever opened his eyes again, he let out a breath that he didn't know that he was holding. There they were. The exorcists that they were rescuing that day were right there in the middle of the lotus. Kanda was carrying an obviously weak Allen and Tiedoll was carrying a seemingly injured Lavi. Reever quickly made a U-Turn after he drove in a little bit.

"Go!" he yelled as he jumped out of the driver's seat.

The back doors opened to let the eager exorcists out…

But not everything goes as planned.

An AKUMA web suddenly shot into the lotus. The others, who had been inside of the upgraded innocence, looked shocked as they remembered how no AKUMA attack had entered the guard before. When Kanda looked at Allen, he frowned at the look on his face. Allen looked like he was crying as if he were saying sorry. Kanda looked at Tiedoll and Lavi. They all had the same gleam in their eyes. After they looked apart from each other, they immediately started a mad dash for the van.

"They're heading for us, too!" Krory yelled to the others.

"Marie! Linali! Go back to the van and help Reever prepare for them! Quickly! Krory, you come with me!" General Nine demanded as she headed for the seemingly injured exorcists.

Everyone followed he instructions without question.

"Lau Shimin!" she called out in a loud voice, "Destroy the AKUMA!"

Sure enough, the small monkey on her shoulder turned into a huge beast, and with a shriek, began to attack the AKUMA as they came into the dissolving flower. Krory also activated his innocence as he began to hunger the AKUMA blood that was dripping from some of the most injured AKUMA. By keeping the AKUMA busy, it helped the others that were running to the van have a better chance of getting there unscathed. But they weren't the only ones protecting them.

As Linali paused in the preparation, she looked to see how fast that they were supposedly going to get there, only to see something magnificent. The flickering green mist that had been around since the beginning of the real battle for the rescue was starting to follow the team as they ran, but it was so strange. The mist began to make forms around the exorcists. The one closest to Kanda was a dragon, the one closest to Lavi was a rabbit, for Tiedoll, a child with a hood on, yet there wasn't any for Allen.

"Linali, they are almost here. Please get the last wires ready." Reever called to her, though he had also briefly paused at the sight.

Kanda was too focused on running to notice the protectors that were around them. The same was for Tiedoll, but not for Lavi. His eyes had widened upon seeing the dragon and looking at his shoulder, he was even more surprised to see a flickering rabbit. It looked at him for a while before looking at his wrists. What had that meant? Luckily, or not, his thoughts were interrupted when a level 5 suddenly landed between them and the van.

It was obviously not happy as the others looked on in horror. It was covered in small holes that were supposedly made by the mist. It was bleeding from several areas and its eyes gleamed with an unholy light. It wanted blood, but from where its glare was facing, it wanted Allen's blood.

"**I'LL KILL YOU, ALLEN WALKER! I'LL KILL YOU AND ALL OF YOUR FRIENDS SLOWLY!"**

Kanda, not liking the way that he was speaking to the exhausted bundle in his arms, began to pull out Mugen for defense.

"**YOU'RE BLOOD WILL COVER THIS GROUND! YOU MAY HAVE WON AGAINST MY PATHETIC, WEAKER BROTHERS BUT LO! I HAVE SURVIVED YOUR FUCKING MIST!"**

Kanda hadn't noticed it, but he was starting to run faster out of pure irritation. Even Allen's tired expression was evolving into a frown.

"**NOTHING WILL STOP ME NOW! NOTHING! I'VE WORKED HARD TO BECOME THE STRONGEST AKUMA WE HAVE ALIVE NOW, AND I'M NOT GIVING IN TO A PUSSY LIKE YOU!"**

Had Kanda looked down, he would've noticed the huge tick mark on the small ones forehead.

"**I WILL EAT YOU ALL FOR MY DINNER TONIGHT! I AM INVINCIBLE! INVINCIB-"**

Suddenly, Kanda and Allen had enough. Kanda's sword gleamed with a look that was meant to kill. The dragon that was originally floating as protection began to glow as it fused with the sword, giving it a sort of fiery look. He drew the sword up, bringing it down swiftly

The AKUMA couldn't even cry out as it was sliced in half.

"Oh, do shut up." The two said simultaneously.

Then the Japanese young man continued running as if he hadn't just sliced through the strongest AKUMA at the time.

Linali, Reever, and just about everyone else watched with shocked faces as they ran past the fallen AKUMA. It had been a straight cut down the middle of its body and it had begun to split cleanly without blood. It looked as if Kanda's sword had just cut through butter! Sure, the others had also seen the dragon, as it was the biggest of the protection around them, but to think that such a defeat was so easy if you were synchronized with Allen's mist was just amazing.

"That's the last of them, Krory…we can head back now." Nine said, still shocked, but not stuttering.

"Y-Yes, General N-Nine." he called to the general as he began to go back to the van.

The mist was now almost completely faded, but the concern was gone, for all of the remaining AKUMA had been destroyed. But still rushing for Allen's sake, Kanda didn't stop running. Finally the rescued exorcists reached the van. Immediately, Reever began to check up on all of the exorcists and General Nine and Krory jumped into the back carefully.

"Alright, start driving Amela!" he called to the finder that was now in the driver's seat.

"Yes sir!" she called back, moving the clutch to drive out of the ruins.

"Okay, Iglesias, I need you to check on General Tiedoll, Linali, check on Lavi, Marie, check on Kanda, and I'll check Allen."

"We're fine." General Tiedoll replied.

"No, we really need to check on you."

"No, I'm serious…" Tiedoll then took off the bandages that were wrapped around him, only to reveal that there were no injuries.

"What in the world…" Linali let out unconsciously.

"We really are fine. Allen's defensive system seems to have also served as a nursing area. The only ones that are truly injured are Allen and Lavi. Lavi's wrists are, for some reason, not healing."

"Linali, will you look at that? I'll check on Allen." Reever said hurriedly.

"Okay." she said as she began unwrapping the bandages around Lavi's wrists.

Reever began checking on his pulse and making it easier for him to breath when, out of the corner of his eye, he saw the last of the green mist collect together into one small, glowing will-o-the-wisp. It floated to Allen's left hand and seemed to sink into the black cross that remained. Once it sank in, the cross turned green and the light started pulsating along with Allen's heart pulse.

"Strange…" he thought aloud.

Mean while, when she finished unwrapping the heavy bandages from him, she looked at him in shock. She remembered getting wounds like them before she had gotten her crystal-type innocence. Does that mean…

"Lavi?"

"Yeah? What's wrong?"

"Your equip-type innocence is turning into a crystal-type as we speak."

Silence filled the van except for the sound of Reever treating Allen for a second until Lavi laughed.

"Well, that's a great thing, isn't it?"

"Yes, well, but it seems to be developing slowly. It'll be more painful as time passes. I should know," she replied, her eyes glittering with concern.

"…Okay. I understand. But, in all honestly, I'm more worried about Allen and Yuu right now." Lavi suddenly turned to "Yuu" with a worried look on his face, seeming to remember something. After a second, it appeared that Tiedoll remembered also.

"What the hell? DON'T CALL ME YUU, YOU STUPID RABBIT! I'm fine! Don't worry-"

"What about your curse, Yuu? If I'm not mistaken, you're curse has already reached its limit…" Tiedoll stated with deep concern saturated in his voice.

Kanda froze. He had remembered waking up to find Allen in a blood-covered shirt…had that blood been his? If it was, then shouldn't he be dead? Slowly, he began to strip the last pieces of shirt that he had left. When everyone looked at his chest, they gasped. He closed his eyes, expecting them to tell him that he was crumbling or something. It was his end.

"Yuu! Look down! You won't believe it!" Lavi cried in an amazed voice.

'_Oh, so watching me die is fascinating now, huh? You piss me off, bastard.'_

"You're curse is receding!"

"…the fuck are you talking about?" he growled, looking to his chest.

When Kanda looked down, to his shock, he was correct. The black vine-like extensions of his curse mark were retreating as they spoke. Slowly, his chest became more and more skin colored. Right in the middle of the writing of his curse, they saw a faint green speck. It was just sitting there and even when Kanda ran his hand over it, it didn't move from its spot. They looked over to Allen, who was currently breathing slowly with the respirator, his eyes closed as he slept. The young teenager was just plain amazing.

"It appears that he can heal more than just recent wounds," Nine whispered.

Kanda sighed and leaned back, sitting his back against the wall of the van.

"Kanda?" Linali started.

"He's not moving this speck till it's done with its job. There's no use in trying to convince him. I don't know how he's doing this, but it's no use trying to get him to stop." Kanda sighed.

He then closed his eyes as if he were in thought. There was no doubt about what he was thinking about, considering that there was a vein that had popped up around his eyebrow. He must be pissed that Allen was risking his life to do such a thing for him. Tiedoll smiled and Lavi gave off his signature grin. Then everyone except Kanda, Allen, and Amela looked at each other.

Everyone came to a silent understanding. They wouldn't mention in front of Levrier the hazy forms that they saw surround the escaping exorcists, nor would they mention the ability to synchronize with his innocence, and lastly, they wouldn't mention Kanda's healing unless someone happened to notice and stupidly say it aloud. Mentioning such things in front of that mad commander would only get the already weakened exorcist in more trouble than he was already in.

Allen had protected them, now it was time to return the favor.


	9. Discovered Secrets

**12/28: Rewrote this chapter~ Here's the message that was here before:  
**

**This took me WAAAAAAY too long...thing is December has been one of the busiest months ever. Strange huh? Well, my school decided to pile on the work and my mom decided to have a Christmas party. I was setting to make this longer and post it on Christmas, but...you see how THAT turned out. This is actually one of the shortest chapters ever...welp, I'm not making that mistake anymore(hopefully)! Also, I'm starting a Bleach fanfic, so I've also been working on that, too.**

**This chapter is a little bit shorter and sweet~ Kanda is OOC cause...you know. I'm planning on posting the next chapter around Feb 1st or so. Then, hopefully, another one for Valentine's Day. You'll most likely get one later this month, then one for the day of chocolate and love(or chocolate love~ mmmmmm...milk choco...)!  
-JD**

**Disclaimer: You know the drill.**

* * *

It took a little while, but they had found an inn in a town quite a few miles away. General Nine had gone in first to see if any AKUMA were hiding in there, since they couldn't use the assistance of Allen's cursed eye. She found no sign of any AKUMA, but she didn't find humans either. Only corpses, dust, and blood remained within the quarters. She had, unfortunately, also found the bodies of the finders that had been on the phone. One of them was one of Amela's close friends.

As the others started moving in, Nine watched over Amela as she mourned over her dead friend's body…or what was left of it. The only way that you could tell that it was her deceased companion was the slightly torn finder's coat and the friendship bracelet that were left behind in an individual pile of ash. Meanwhile, Linali went to the kitchen with Iglesias to find some food, Tiedoll watched over Lavi and helped him with his pained wrists, Krory checked once again every nook and cranny of the inn once again for AKUMA, and Kanda carried Allen inside on his back with Reever following closely behind.

"Oh! I found some bread, meat, and a good broth for some soup. We'll only be staying here for the night, so this should be able to hold us until we stop again." Linali told Iglesias.

"That's good. I found some vegetables and a pot for us to cook in."

"Great! We can start to coo-"

"You go ahead into the main room. I'll cook," the Spanish woman said.

Linali looked confused, "…But don't you need an assistant or something?"

"I'll be fine. You know good and well that you're worried about Allen. Go ahead and watch over him. I'll cook for everyone." She gave Linali a knowing smile.

"…Okay…If you say so…oh, finder-san?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you. Thank you very much." Linali smiled.

"No problem, Ms. Lee. Now go on."

Linali then quickly left the kitchen.

* * *

The inn was an absolute mess. The formerly beautiful paintings that once graced the walls of the forcefully retired inn were ruined. The rugs that had been magnificently sown were now nothing but rags. Tables and chairs that once had beautiful designs were cracked and broken. The ones that weren't totally destroyed were overturned into an upright state and used for what their original job was. Wallpaper was peeling off of the cracked walls. Ash and pieces of jewelry lay everywhere inside and out of the inn.

Nevertheless, most of the group had finally settled down in what used to be the large main lobby. Reever and Amela were working on Allen, Iglesias was cooking, Krory continued keeping watch, and Nine questioned the three currently conscious exorcists that had been rescued from the hands of the AKUMA.

"So, all you remember is waking up with the defense already activated?" Nine questioned.

"It's not all we remember, it's all that happened." Lavi corrected, his wrists getting rewrapped by Tiedoll.

"When I woke up, all of my injuries had already been healed. It's just Lavi's wrists that hadn't healed." Tiedoll commented, still focused on wrapping his wrists correctly.

"That means…Lavi, is your innocence upgrading?"

"…I believe so." Somehow, he smiled a bit wryly as he said it.

"Why is it forming so slowly?" Amela asked as she continued to tend to Allen.

"Who knows?"

A small silence covered the room. Well, that was until the kitchen door opened and Iglesias came in with the food

"Here you go! Beautifully made, considering the lack of proper seasoning," Iglesias cheered lightly.

The young Spanish woman had always been happy to fix food for others, even if she was reluctant to show her enjoyment. She even occasionally helped Jerry in the kitchen with the chefs when there were no missions for her to attend. Though she would've been happier inside if there were more ingredients to work with, she was proud of the results nonetheless.

It was a simple meal, at least she thought so. Using the vegetables that she found and the broth and meat that Linali had given her, she made a soup with carrots, peas, broiled celery, and beef. The bread was simply something you could dip into it. It was a tad bit stale, so she added bits of onion and garlic into the broth to give it a slightly stronger taste.

Though they had yet to taste it, the group was lightened.

"Mmm! Smells really good there, Iggy!" Lavi cheered elastically.

For now, she decided to ignore the nickname, but gave him a look that said "Never again are you to say that".

"Looks absolutely marvelous! Thank you for making this wonderful dinner," Tiedoll praised.

"It looks delicious!" Krory commented from the window, his nose twitching slightly.

"You were able to make all of that from just those ingredients we found? You're an amazing cook!" Linali honored her.

"I must say, it smells wonderful. Thank you." Nine smiled a bit.

"Che." Of course, Kanda wasn't much for words.

"It smells delicious. You must've put a lot of heart into making this for us. Thank you," Marie admired.

"As always, Iglesias, you amaze my senses with your cooking abilities!" Amela grinned, wiping tears from her face.

"Hey! Save me a bowl, will you? I smell it too," Reever said, checking Allen for any more injuries.

"Oh stop. You people will make me blush." Iglesias groaned.

* * *

As they ate, giving occasional praises to an embarrassed Iglesias, Lavi got an idea for a joke.

"Hey, this food smells really good." Lavi commented.

"Yeah." Iglesias said back.

"No, I mean really good."

"Thanks."

"No, I mean really, REALLY good."

"Okay, thank you."

"I mean really, REALLY, REALLLLLY good!"

"I got that already." she replied irritatedly.

"I mean reallllly, reallllly, REALLLLLY gooooood!"

"Alright already! What is-"

"I mean good enough to wake up the unconscious good!"

Then it clicked to most of them.

Reever face-palmed, Kanda hummed a bit in annoyance, Linali giggled, Marie chuckled, Krory looked at him in realization, and Lavi smiled widely. Tiedoll, Nine, Amela, and Iglesias were just a bit confused, though.

"What does the smell of food have to do with anything?" Amela asked curiously.

"You don't know this because you're usually out on missions, but Allen has the biggest stomach than anyone in the Black Order! It's mainly because of his parasitic innocence, but he has to eat more than his own body weight to sustain his innocence. It's so energy consuming, he gets hungry often-" Lavi suddenly cut himself off.

"What is it?" Linali asked, concerned.

A dark look then began to loom over Kanda's, Tiedoll's, and Lavi's faces.

"If what Lavi said just now is true and Allen hadn't had food in about a week, his body is probably in more pain than we realize." Tiedoll informed them.

"Damn that moyashi and his fucking hero complex…" Kanda groaned under his breath.

They all thought for a second. Allen, a parasitic innocence holder with a hardcore need for food, defended a group of injured exorcists for a week without the much needed substance. That put his life on the line majorly. Had the others taken too long or Timcanpy hadn't made it in time…they didn't even want to think about it.

Speaking of which, where was that little golden golem anyway?

Upon hearing a small rustle of cloth, they looked over to where Allen lay. The golem was messing around with the clothes on his chest, trying to climb into his shirt, it seemed. Why would he want to do that, especially when he's injured?

"Oi, c'mon Tim. Allen's still resting." Reever said when something clicked in his head.

"Amela?"

"Yes?"

"Had we checked to see if anything was wrong with Allen's chest?"

"…Oh God."

The two were at his side in a flash. Allen was wheezing! It was so silent that you couldn't tell until you got really close.

"Help me get his shirt off. He needs to breath." Reever commanded, fully in health mode.

"Yes S'r!" Amela replied hurriedly, her Finnish accent poking through just a bit.

Everyone watched on anxiously.

"…the hell?" Reever said suddenly.

"What's wrong?" Linali asked, concern and worry saturated in her words.

"No wonder he can't breathe…he has a really tight vest under his shirt!"

"I-I can't g't it off, sir!" Amela cried worriedly.

"Damn it!" Kanda yelled suddenly before rushing over and helping her.

"It's st'ck on somethin', Kanda!" Amela shrieked.

Kanda had reached his limit. The noise and worry had gotten on his last nerve. He had several veins popping up on his forehead as he grasped the zipper and ripped it down. He broke the zipper in the process. Allen took in a small gasp before returning to regular breathing. He was no longer wheezing.

"Oh thank God! Kanda!" Linali shouted.

Everyone rushed over to them except Nine and Tiedoll, and Lavi was the first to see Kanda's face and paused. His eyes were wide as saucers, a small flush tinting the bridge of his nose. Slowly, his eyelids began to squint, the right one twitching.

"Yuu-chan?"

"What's wrong with him?" Krory inquired.

"Yuu-chan's making a weird face! He looks frozen and-" Lavi looked down and he himself froze, visible eye opened wide.

"What's wrong with him?" Reever asked hurriedly as he reached for the hospital bag.

Neither said a thing.

"C'mon! Tell me!"

Not a word.

"If I'm going to treat him-"

"Her," Kanda cut in, hands twitching on the corners of the now torn vest.

Nine finally took a deeper interest as she looked over to the group. Tiedoll's glasses glossed over for a second. Everyone else seemed to not catch what he said.

"…Scuse me? I don't think I heard you right…what did you say?" Iglesias finally cut in.

"Her…moyashi's a…he's a…he-" Kanda stuttered, the blush spreading across his face.

"OH MY GOD, ALLEN HAS BREASTS!" Lavi screamed.

* * *

Nothing could be as uncomfortable as the heavy stillness that sat in the room. Allen's chest had been rewrapped due to Kanda ripping the wraps slightly when he forcefully unzipped the zipper, courtesy of the finders who were both women, and the meal had ended. Now, all that was left was a conversation that was just begging to happen. Finally, realizing that the discussion was inevitable, Linali spoke up first.

"Why? Why would he- I mean…why would she do this?"

"I'm sure that she has her own reasons." the normally quiet Amela replied, "We all have something that we keep a secret, no? It's best to just wait and see if she wishes to tell us."

"But…I'm sorry, it's just a bit hard for me to understand this," she continued as she took a glance at Allen's sleeping face.

Linali wasn't the only one shocked, though. Everyone except the finders, who currently barely knew her, was stunned.

Reever, being the scientist he was, couldn't help but wonder how Allen had avoided getting discovered. She wasn't exactly flat-chested. In fact, it must've been painful to continuously wrap those tight, squashing coverings around herself and fight with them on. She had been wheezing, for goodness sake! To have to battle continuously with such constricted breathing was unheard of. But at least he realized why Allen never came back from a mission with a chest or stomach wound.

Lavi was more amazed than shocked. How she hid such a secret from everyone with an upper region like hers was more of a feat than an atrocity. His little brother- no…sister had been through so much, and thinking back to the conversation with Commander Levrier, he realized that there could be a small connection after all. But even when knowing this, he felt that Allen was still much too trustworthy to question her now.

Marie, though he hadn't known Allen for long, knew that she had to be strong to go through what he's already seen her go through. And now, having heard that she held the Heart of Innocence, he knew that there would be more transgressions against her ahead. He didn't mind being unnoticed in the silence of the room. It left him to think about what has happened with her through all of this time. She was truly an amazing young lady.

Tiedoll and Nine were about the same on the subject, but with one knowing more than the other.

Tiedoll knew that the young girl laying asleep on what little that they could provide for her as a bed had just risked her life for him. He knew that she had the right to hide whatever she wished and had no less respect for her than before. In fact, it grew instead.

Nine, though she didn't know all that had happened in Allen's life, knew that nevertheless, a young girl's life is always filled with some sort of offense. Most girls, she was sure, would have broken down into tears or possibly committed suicide at the life that Allen was leading, yet the girl still kept moving forward. That zeal and spunk that the snow-haired teenager had in her was amazing. And to think that the girl is only fifteen…it's quite a bit of a shock.

Krory was pretty silent on how he felt. He would've never thought that the white-haired child who had knocked some sense into him at his old castle when he tried to commit suicide with the man-eating flowers was, in fact, a young girl facing her own issues. The young exorcist was much too young to deal with the things that she was dealing with. He was sure that he hadn't heard everything about her. Now he understood why she had been so irritated when he tried to end his own life.

Kanda…well for lack of words…couldn't really grasp the idea that Allen, his rival, was a girl. The moyashi, as he called hi-…her, had grown to be, honestly, one of the best exorcists in the Order. He remembered that one fateful night when he-…she had used her innocence to control hi-…her body when she could no longer move. To force yourself to keep fighting when, by other people's standards, you had no more fight left in you was something that had gained him a secret respect for the beansprout. But thinking back on all those times that he had shunned hi-her, whereas if he knew that h-she was a girl, he would've given h-her more respect.

And he had to admit…in this case, she was a very good actress.

* * *

The remaining people at the Black Order were all troubled. They hadn't heard a thing since Nine, Krory, Linali, Reever, Amela, and Iglesias, had left on the rescue mission for the other exorcists. Komui was the most worried, but amazingly, not only for Linali. Finders along the route for their return had informed him that there were vast amounts of AKUMA heading the very way that the rescue was situated. If they didn't move in time-

His thoughts were interrupted by his phone, ringing hope into the faces of those who heard it. As Komui hurriedly pick it up and put it on speaker, everyone in the room listened closely.

"Hello?" Komui started cautiously.

"What the fuck's up with your voice?"Kanda angrily replied.

Upon hearing his voice, everyone in the room began to cheer, hugging each other and hurriedly asking numerous questions.

"Hush now! I ask the questions!" Komui announced with a high and mighty voice.

Everyone else stared at him with an annoyed look and listened.

"We're fine, brother! You don't need to worry. The rescue was successful."Linali's voice called through the phone.

"How is everyone?"

"Everybody's good! Well, except Al-chan."Lavi said.

"What's wrong with him?" Johnny asked worriedly, receiving an upset look from Komui.

"It seems that Allen's innocence has healed everyone inside of the guard that he put up, unfortunately, having his innocence activated for a week, in which there was no food, his body is exhausted. He's been sleeping nonstop since he lay down inside of the van." Nine replied.

"His breathing was also very constricted. If they hadn't gotten to us in time…well, let's not think about that."Tiedoll included.

"Restricted breathing? What caused that?" Komui questioned.

There was a silence on the other side of the line before a small voice, somehow belonging to Lavi, peered through.

"Is Commander Levrier in there?"

Everyone looked at each other for a second, wondering why he would ask such a question. After searching for a second, just to be absolutely sure, Komui replied.

"No, he's not. Why would you ask-"

"Well then, Al-chan's breathing was constricted because he was hiding his breasts!"

Everyone froze like icicles.

On the other side of the line, there was a small yelp of pain and a "Way to be frank, Baka Usagi!" courtesy of Kanda.

"…I'm sorry. I don't believe that I heard you correctly. Allen was hiding his what?" Komui asked, glasses still glossed over.

"Sorry about Lavi, Nii-san. What he meant to say was that Allen was hiding her gender from us."

"We have yet to learn her reason," Marie started, "She has, as General Nine said, been asleep since we picked them up. She had numerous wraps and a vest around her chest, causing the questioned constriction. Amela and Iglesias, the finders, have already removed and reset the wraps to a point where they are no longer suffocating her. She is breathing normally now."

They didn't immediately receive any response due to the shocking revelation. How could the girl have hidden such a fact from them for so long? Even when she had received the hole in her heart…the Asian Branch must know about it. Komui decided to contact them and kept it in a mental note before responding.

"That's good. Be sure that she continues to breathe freely. She at least needs the ability to take in breath without struggling. By the way, what did you mean by everyone else was healed?"

"Allen's innocence had taken on a misty constitution that formed into a lotus in a large area around them. It healed everyone's wounds except for Lavi's wrists. It seems that his synchronization with his innocence improved during the battle. He's waiting for his crystal type to completely form. Allen's wounds were healed also, except for the exhaustion that came from having her innocence activated for so long and the recoil from developing a new form of innocence. Tiedoll and Kanda are fine with no injuries." Reever informed them.

"What about Kanda's curse? Can he afford to take any more damage?" Komui asked restlessly.

There was a silence and a bit of muttering before Kanda answered.

"Listen. If that fucking asshole Levrier or anyone who are snitches is in there, get your ass out."

Though a tad bit startled, no one moved.

"We decided that we would trust you guys, figuring that you are…'family' as they choose to say…but if I hear that any of you told anyone outside of this room what I'm about to tell you, you'll have a sword up your sorry ass the instant I find out."

A few of them shivered at the harsh tone in which he spoke.

"Okay. To say I'm fine would be an understatement. The fucking moyashi's using her innocence to heal my curse. Don't get all damn astonished yet. Her innocence is deactivated…mostly. It's just this one speck of innocence that hadn't gone back into her hand. I'm not sure if it's affecting her or not, but my curse mark is receding."

"From what it sounds like, it seems that you're worried about little Allen!" Komui said with a smirk.

There was a silence before a struggle was heard and words like "kill" and "fucking" and many other derogatory and gruesome words escaped from Kanda's mouth. After the other side seemed to calm down, Reever answered the phone.

"Must you get him so riled up, Komui?" 

"Yes, I must!" he replied in a matter of fact.

Reever stifled a sigh.

"Is there anything else that we need to know?"

"Yes, there is. If you are trying to head back the way you came, you need to turn around. There have been signs of AKUMA heading in your direction. It would take much too long to travel to the Asian Branch and the American Branch is experiencing complications with a rise in AKUMA numbers. My advice is to travel as much as you can, then when Allen wakes up, use the Ark to return. I know that it was forbidden by the Commander, but I am the Head of the Black Order and I shall run it the way that I see fit. I will inform you of any more information on AKUMA whereabouts if you call me or when you need it."

"Yes sir." Somehow, Reever sounded proud.

"Good luck and may God bless you…I LOVE YOU, LINALI! TAKE CARE, DARLING!"

Everyone there could've sworn that they heard a groan on the other side.

"Protect your baby sister, will you?"

"Huh? What was that, brother?"

"Well, technically, since we are all family, that makes Allen the baby sister of the Black Order since she's the youngest girl here."

"We'll do our best, Nii-san. We'll see you as soon as we can. Love you guys." Linali replied with a smile in her voice.

Then the phone cut off.

"All right everyone, back to work!" Komui announced.

Everyone groaned, but in truth had raised spirits. Everyone was alive and doing well. They could only pray that the recently named 'baby sister' would be okay.

* * *

"_Allen~ Wake up, Allen~"_ a sing-song voice called to her.

When Allen opened her eyes, she saw that she was lying in a field of white flowers. The sky was pitch-black and the moon shone a face close to that of the side view of a skull. There was a small lake not too far from her, where the ruins of some sort of village lay in the water.

She was wearing a plain white sundress. Upon looking at what she could see of herself without a reflection, she noticed that she held a withering lotus in her left hand. There was only one petal left on it. As she sat up, she realized where she was. It was her Dream World.

"_How lovely to see you awake, Allen!"_

Looking up from the ground, she saw laced-up boots, a beautiful Victorian dress without too much on it, till she got to the top hat which adorned one of the very white roses that she had used for a temporary bed. Her face seemed to be shaping into one more human. Her wavy white hair fell around her form.

"Neah! It's surely nice to see you again!" Allen laughed as she stood.

"_It's nice to see you too, Al-chan!"_ she replied as she hugged the suddenly frozen girl.

"Al-chan?"

She shrugged. _"I picked it up from Lavi. Frankly, I think the nickname is adorable!"_

"Whatever you say…How long have I been out?"

"_Not too long. Almost a day."_

"A day?!" Allen gasped in shock.

"_Considering what you've just been through, you're body needs all of the rest it can get. You spent a week without food with a recently upgraded innocence constantly activated. If you forced yourself to wake up now, who knows what kind of pain you'd be in? It's best to just stay asleep for now, hun."_

"Oh…well when you put it that way…I understand. But what's with this flower?"

"_That's what's left of Kanda's curse."_

"What?" Allen looked at her nervously.

"_When you first activated your innocence, it began to heal the other's wounds. That includes the almost filled out curse that Kanda had. You began to heal all of his past injuries that the curse held also. Once that lotus petal is gone, the lotus in the glass at home will be complete and glowing with health."_

"So…my innocence is still activated?"

"_Yup! Only partially, but it's still awake nonetheless! You really want to heal this Kanda person, huh? Young love is so cute~"_ Neah let out a squeal as she put her hands on her face and spun around in circles.

"I DON'T…well…uh…yeah." Allen admitted, blushing adorably.

"_So cute~"_ She hugged her incarnation tightly.

"Wait a second…where's Link?"

"…_Uhh…it seems that I may have overdosed him on a personal drug I made…"_

"What?!" Allen gasped.

"_Don't worry! The only thing that it does is make you sleep!"_

"…I refuse to ask."

The two didn't seem to notice it, but the lotus that previously sat in her hand disappeared.

* * *

It was early morning the next day. Reever had informed the others about the plans to return to the Black Order the night before. They were going to at least try to reach the Asian Branch and use an already activated Ark door to get them back. Considering the AKUMA levels around the American Region along with information from other finders, the Asian Branch was their only choice. Even through those different conversations, not a word of Allen's gender left the phone call made to their home Order.

Kanda woke up groggily, feeling a bit more stiff than usual. As he sat up and looked at the sky outside of a destroyed window, he realized that he had awakened too early. The sun had yet to reach his sight. Groaning, he realized that he heard a slight chatter in the main lobby. When his sight focused in the dark room, he noticed Lavi curled up in a cover not too far from him and Krory sleeping quietly in a corner. Stretching lazily, he stalked out of the room toward the talking.

"Well, look who's up?" Marie called to him

Upon entering the room, he found Marie and Nine talking to each other with Reever and Iglesias asleep on what was left of some of the couch cushions. Allen was laid out on some of the less ruined ones.

"Whatever. I couldn't sleep well anyway."

"It is a bit early for you to be up." Nine said, concerned.

"Che."

"Kanda, you really need as much rest as you can get. After what's happened-"

"I don't matter right now. How's Allen?" Kanda rushed before he promptly shut his mouth tightly.

"Awww…you DO care about Al-chan…" a half-asleep Lavi grinned from the doorway.

Marie smiled and Nine sipped her wine quietly. Kanda stood there quietly, holding back a blush.

"You better be glad that you're injured, or I'd fucking kill you…"

* * *

Meanwhile in Morocco, a very confused Link stood as he looked at a World Map.

"I overslept…by about a week…what on Earth did I eat?!"


	10. The Third Part of a Play

**12/28: Rewrote this chapter~ Here's the message that was here before:  
**

**Sup bishies~ I finally finished it! To be honest, my muse had come back with such a force that I had to FORCE myself to stop typing for this chapter! As you may have known from what used to be here, I had lost my muse and didn't get the chapter in on time. Sorry for the delay! ****Also, I've decided to write a few responses to the reviews I recieved from you guys about the Pokemon thing~**

**Tango Dancer - Yeah, I know right? Thanks for your review!  
MoonlitMelody - I can think of 10 that are worse, but my mom doesn't seem to care, yah know? Thanks your your revi!  
- Awww, that makes me feel tingly inside! Thanks for your review!  
crazycomedian - No, don't go into your depression corner. You're review is wonderful! Thank you.  
Gothicgirl12 - Yup, it's very addicting! Thanks for your revi!  
gender-bender-lover-101 - Yeah, I spent $50 on that thing! Thanks for your revi!  
kibethstar - Thanks! I see it the same way! Thanks for your revi!  
fallendestinyxx - I know right? TFTR!  
Shi-shiNata - Thank you for your advice! I tried that tho, but thanks anyway! TFTR!  
usuilove21 - Aww I feel so special now~ TFTR!  
(If I didn't write a response to your review, don't fret. I just got tired. XP)**

**Just so you guys know, I still didn't get it back. She even said that I can't play it until I leave her house. I await my college years. I better get my $50 back.**

**This chapter, story wise, is the LONGEST CHAPTER I EVER TYPED! In Microsoft Word, it's 11 1/8 PAGES! YAY! I pat myself on the back. ANYWHO, I hope that my next chappie comes in a WHOLE LOT FASTER than this one. Also, I will warn you now. There are gore scenes in this one. IDK why I typed them, but there they are there...he he... You also get to see the reason why you don't piss off Neah. Just saying that. Nothin more.**

**BTW: **_"Wareware wa sore o sa remasu..." = "We are it..." *****_**Translated on Google Translate. Sorry if it's wrong.**

"Bla bla" - talking  
**"Bla Bla" - demonic sounding  
**'Bla bla' - thinking  
_"Bla bla" - Neah talking or flashback  
_"Bla bla" - on the other side of the phone

**Disclaimer: Y'all know I dun own -Man. Enjoy the chappie~!**

* * *

Bak Chang felt a tiny bit of twitching near his eye. That was a bad omen to him. Whenever his eye felt twitchy like that, he knew that something bad was going to happen. He felt the twitching when the Level 4 AKUMA infiltrated the Asian Black Order Branch and when he felt that Fou was about to kick, punch, or harm his body in a certain way. Yet, his eye wasn't only twitching, but he felt a tingling sensation in his stomach. The tingling in his stomach happened when good things were to come. He felt it when Allen had evolved with his innocence and when he was able to talk with Linali without the watchful eyes of a certain possessive Chinese sibling of hers. How was it, now, that he was feeling both at the same time? What kind of action would occur that would bring both bad and good?

He slouched just a little lower in his chair than usual, trying to get rid of the feelings shifting through his body. How could he get the feeling to leave him? It was both disturbing and comforting at the same time, and it bothered him. Why couldn't it just be one or the other? What was to come in the days ahead? Speaking of days, it had been a while since he heard that General Tiedoll, Kanda, the Bookman apprentice and Mr. Walker had left on that mission to the Italica Ruins. What had happened to them?

Just as he was about to get deeper into thought, his phone rang. Grumbling under his breath, he fixed his voice from the low frustrated one he had been holding on the inside to his professional one before he picked up the receiver and answered.

"Hello, Head of the Asian Branch speaking."

"Hallooooo~" a sing-song voice trilled.

"How may I help you, Komui?" Bak drawled, dropping his voice.

"My, my! Who woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning? What ails you, my good sir?" Komui continued in his happy-go-lucky voice.

"Do you remember how I would get a twitchy feeling near my eye when something bad was going to happen and I would get a tingly feeling in my stomach when good things were going to happen?"

"Yes~ What about it?"

"What does it mean when I feel both at once?"

"…To be honest, I'm not sure! That's your issue, unfortunately."

"I knew it."

"Anyway, to talk about your bodily omen sign is not why I called you." Komui's voice suddenly got serious.

Bak brought himself to attention, "Why have you called me?"

"If I recall, around the time of the mission to retrieve General Cross from Edo, Allen was put into intensive care at your facility due to a punctured heart."

"Yes. He was."

"Did you see the puncture itself?"

"No, I didn't. A golem had recorded it when there was one with Fou. She said she saw it herself."

"Hmm…I see. I knew that it seemed strange that you didn't notify us of what we found out."

Bak's ears seemed to open more as the conversation continued. Why was Allen being mentioned? Had something happened to him?

"What on earth do you speak of?"

"Allen Walker is a girl."

His face went blank.

"…Pardon?"

"It was recently discovered by the rescue team to the Italica Ruins that Allen was a girl. We never had any sort of document of this, however. How she managed to hide it is something that I anticipate on confronting her about."

"Then, if what you say is true…Fou…"

"It is likely that Fou knew after she picked her up. Yet, why didn't she inform you?"

"I don't know. I'll have to ask her."

"Oh. Before I forget to tell you, she's also the holder of the Heart of Innocence."

Bak's face was left expressionless yet again. Only this time, this was a lot paler before.

"…PARDON?!"

* * *

"Fou! Where are you? Fou!"

Bak ran through the halls faster than he thought he ever had. He quickly passed by Wong, who looked up in surprise as he saw his superior speed past him. Quickly snapping out of it, Wong rushed to catch up with him.

"Master Chang, what has happened?" he called to him.

"Where's Fou? I need to speak to her immediately!"

"She's in her training quarters, sir!"

With that, Bak sharply pivoted to where he was pointed in the direction of said training area. He then rushed off straight to that area.

"She told me to not let anyone disturb her, though!" Wong called after him.

Yet it was too late. He was already down the hallway. He sighed heavily, knowing that the man's life would be in danger if he didn't help him, and therefore scrambled after him.

Watching all of this from afar, three rookie scientists peered in on the situation with careful eyes. Moving from their hiding spot behind the wall, Lou Fa, Shifu, and Likei shuffled into a huddle near the opening to the archway to Fou's training area.

"What do you think happened? To go to Fou even when she doesn't want to be disturbed…it must be pretty serious," Shifu wondered.

"Do you think it's about the mission to the Italica Ruins that I heard about? I heard that a lot of finders died on that one. Even a few exorcists almost didn't make it," Likei thought aloud, rubbing his chin.

"But how can that be? A general was also assigned to that mission. All of them ended up alright…right?" Lou Fa inquired, worry lacing her voice.

Slowly, they looked from their huddle to the archway that could lead to their doom.

"Well, it's worth a shot." Lou Fa stated.

Nodding to each other, they snuck down the hall to where Bak, Wong, and Fou were.

* * *

Fou looked at Bak with several veins popping through her skin. Bak looked back at her with more malice than she did, yet he sported a bruised cheek from a well-thrown punch. Wong stood still, holding Bak, who had finally ceased struggling. The three hiding scientists became silent as mice as they stood behind some of the multiple pillars within the room.

"What do ya want? I thought I didn't want any interruptions!" the guardian yelled, her 'hands' on her hips in irritation.

"I know that you didn't but I must confront you about this!"

"About what?! There isn't anything to confront me about! Whatever it is, tell me later." Fou waved him off with disdain, turning around to walk back to the training grounds with a frown on her face.

"Why did you lie about Allen Walker?!" Bak demanded.

Fou froze, wide-eyed in shock.

Wong's mouth opened just slightly and the eyes of the multiple scientists widened just the tiniest bit.

Fou turned to him slowly before stopping to stare at his slightly bruised face.

"What the hell are ya talking about?" she asked, her voice holding just the faintest apprehension.

"You know good and well what I speak of," Bak proclaimed, shaking Wong off of him and standing straight, "Please explain to me, Fou, why I got a call today from Komui Lee proclaiming that the rescue exorcists discovered Sir Walker's femininity when she had, in fact, been cared for by you when she acquired a chest wound." His stance was firm and his voice was without error or stutter.

Lou Fa unconsciously let out a gasp. Unfortunately for the group, the vicinity had become silent after Bak's outburst, so it was heard clearly. Wong turned his head to the pillars at the very edge of the room.

"You three, show yourselves. We know that you're there," Wong ordered.

The sound of heavy swallowing and silent footsteps echoed as the three "fugitives" stepped from their hiding spots. Yet this was not what Lou Fa was concerned about.

"Is what he says true, Fou? Is Mr. Walker a…girl?"

The other two scientists, discovering her zeal for her answer stood behind her with equally questioning faces.

Fou looked around the room. All eyes were pointed straight at her. Realizing her defeat, she heaved a heavy sigh.

"Yeah. It's true. But before you start judging the girl, hear me out," she grumbled dejectedly.

* * *

_There was a white-haired teen no older than fifteen currently sleeping on a hospital bed. There was a hole in the kid's chest, yet something glowing green was slowly sealing the hole in the skin and heart of the young girl. Yes, though Fou couldn't believe it with her own eyes, there was a young, white-haired girl with a sealing hole in her chest and a missing arm lying lifelessly on the bed, just breathing for dear life. Never in the many years that she had been a guardian deity had she ever seen someone with those kinds of wounds survive, let alone their innocence helping their holder live. The exorcist wasn't giving up on living and her innocence had the same will as she did. She took a picture of the area right above her chest for decency, though it made it look as if she were male, but she could explain that later._

_Just as she was about to rush and go tell either Wong or Bak, a small hand grasped hers. She turned and stared in shock to find that the small hand belong to the girl breathing heavily on the gurney. Her silver eyes were hazed over with either pain or lack of breath. A tiny smile moved to grace her pale blue lips with the tiniest bit of warmth. She then parted them and began to utter something slowly. Fou, not understanding what she was whispering moved closer to the girl._

"_Pl…please…don't…tell them…that I…I'm a girl…"_

_Fou frowned. Surely she hadn't heard the young lady correctly. What did she mean by don't tell them that she was female?_

"_I'll…explain…later…just…p…please…"_

"…_Okay. I won't."_

_The miniscule smile returned before the hand dropped and the mind fell to an unconscious state._

* * *

"_Why?"_

"_Huh?" Allen asked._

_It had been a few days since the girl had awakened and she was already moving with vigor. She bounced back pretty quickly…like a beansprout._

"_Why did you tell me to keep your gender a secret? Surely the Main Black Order already knows with Hevlaska and all."_

_Allen kept quiet, wanting to twirl her thumbs, but she only had one._

"…_You told her to keep it a secret also, didn't you? I heard of the Destroyer of Time. I heard __**he **__had white hair and a red scar over his eye. I heard that __**he**__ would end the war."_

"_Not everything is as it seems, you know." Allen said jokingly._

_Fou wasn't laughing._

"_Why would you hide your gender from everyone? Aren't they your friends or some shit like that?"_

_Allen's face turned solemn after a short giggle._

"_It's…a habit. I can't help but disguise myself as a boy. I've done it for almost all of my life. Living with a circus of rowdy men always looking for anything with a hole that they can screw with has taught me that it's best to just look like a boy. They'd find me less appealing that way if the arm didn't throw them off first."_

"_You lived in a circus," Fou said, it being more of a statement than a question._

"_Yes. I was clown along with Mana," Allen began with a saddened smile, "He was the only parental figure that I've ever had. He told me about the dangers of being "cute as a doll" while surrounded by men. A few of the workers had been fugitives that probably wouldn't hesitate to hurt "my adorable little daughter". In all honesty, Mana wasn't my birth father. He found me on the streets of London on an early Christmas morning…ah nevermind. I don't wish to bore you with something like this."_

"_Wait…" Fou started, but Allen didn't seem to hear her._

_Allen suddenly stood before patting her face with the one hand she had left. She then turned to Fou with a mask of a happy face._

"_I'm starved! I'll go to the cafeteria to eat something. See you at three!"_

_She grinned cheerily before rushing off to eat. Fou ended up just sitting there with unanswered questions._

* * *

_It was Allen's final goodbyes before she would be leaving for Edo within the Ark left behind by the AKUMA. Lastly, the white-haired girl stopped in front of Fou's door. She gave it a hesitant knock before her voice bellowed from the wall._

"_What do ya want, Al? I can't see ya out in this condition."_

"_I just wanted to say thank you," Allen replied, smiling lightly._

_Fou remained silent._

"_You've been a very good friend to me. You believed in me and pushed me so that I could be up and running again. Thank you."_

"_No problem."_

_The whitette turned back to the hallway she came from._

"_Can you do me one last favor?"_

"_What." It sounded more like a statement to her._

"…_Don't tell anyone that I'm a girl, okay? Please."_

"…_Yeah, I'll keep your gender a secret. Dang, you're so complicated! Now hurry up and get outta here. You have AKUMA to save."_

_A warm smile spread across her face._

"_Thanks."_

_The last thing that Fou heard was the light bump of boots against stone. Then all was silent._

"_Foolish girl…"_

* * *

"I made a promise to her. Do ya think that in that kind of situation I could even THINK of tellin'?" Fou growled, her arms crossed and back facing the others.

Bak, though he had mixed feelings, could honestly not argue with that. Feeling stressed, he sighed heavily.

"I believe that I can understand that now," he replied.

There wasn't really anything that anyone could say about the situation. It was just so…peculiar. It was as peculiar as the white-haired girl herself.

"For all I know, she's still using that "stupid clown" façade to hide what she's really feeling. She surely was back then."

"I see…well, as much as I'd like to interrogate you on this a bit further, I've gotten very important news from the Black Order."

"Ya could've just said it when you got here. Hurry up, I'm bu-"

"Allen holds the Heart of Innocence."

She paused her rant.

"…WHAT THE FUCK?!"

"AGH! MY EAR!

As Bak and Fou squabbled, it seemed that they had forgotten about the icicles that were their comrades.

* * *

There was an eerie stillness that wafted through the area, and the only sounds anything left alive could hear was the occasional whisper and the rolls of crumbling pebbles. Black and brown rats scurried out of the way when a group of humans cautiously walked along an invisible path at the dawn of a new day in the town once gleaming with lights and teeming with life. Destroyed buildings and small shimmering fires littered the area. A few glowing ashes floated lazily as the grey sky brightened slowly. Other than those few almost noiseless footsteps, the municipality was covered with a cloud of lifelessness.

There was a group of hushed humans that quietly, stealthily pattered on toward the exit of the ghost town. One was a blond-haired woman, leading the group slowly through the rubbish. Behind her, a man cloaked in black, who looked almost vampiric, stalked noiselessly behind her with watchful, swiveling eyes and heightened senses. A French man with light brown hair and gleaming glasses walked as carefully and balanced as he could as an injured redhead held on to his back as tightly as he could with his painfully injured wrists. Green eyes were slightly dulled due to having just awakened a few minutes ago as the boy tried not to think of the damage around him. A young Japanese man trailed behind them, a firm expression on his face as he looked toward the middle of the group. His hands constantly tightened and loosened on the sword strapped to his side, just waiting for anything to suddenly come out and attack the already stressed team and break the thin thread of peace they had left.

In the middle of everyone, there were three people. One was a young woman, her dark green hair glowing slightly as the embers burned and sent glowing light into the dark, cloudy sky. Her face was downcast with worry and anxiety as she walked along side one of her friends. The large, blind man she walked beside also had his face slightly down. Though the man couldn't see, he could hear the sound of burning and breathing, whether they were the harsh breaths of those around him or the calm, eased breaths of the one in his arms.

The young woman he held had snow white hair and a curse mark over her left eye. The new shirt that she wore no longer pressed on her chest as she could finally breathe without wheezing. She looked even more small and delicate than usual as she was carried. An Australian walked along the other side of her, monitoring her breathing and made sure that while she rested, she was as comfortable as she could be. Concern flashed in his eyes constantly as they trudged through the wasteland. Two finders, both female, kept both eyes on everyone, ready to tend to anyone's needs. Both the Swedish and the Spanish women sighed to themselves. If only the sun were at least shining a bit more…

Finally reaching the gate in which they entered the once beautiful place, the saw the van that they had arrived in, ash sitting on it like it was a statue. Nine checked silently for anything or anyone that would possibly come out and attack them, when nothing was seen, she gave everyone else the signal to move to the automobile. They were suddenly filled with a new vigor, rushing silently to it. Krory ran to the back of it, opening the doors to let his fellow friends in. They quickly filed in, making sure that everyone was alright and not a soul had seen them. Reever hooked the Allen to an IV and made sure that it functioned properly before giving Iglesias, one of the finders, an okay. The Spaniard nodded back before starting the van. A slightly harsh bubbling sound erupted from it before it settled into a low, quiet rumble. Slowly, the woman backed the vehicle until it was a safe distance away from the wall of the city gate to turn it away from the leftover rags of something once lovely. The ash fell like snow from the sky, coating everything in black.

A little girl's broken doll was slowly covered until it became unrecognizable until a child floated to it and dusted it off. The invisible eyes of wandering dead souls watched in wonder as the last remnant of life left them behind. Waving their hands one last time to the traveling strangers, a voice called to them. Their already intangible forms became no more as they were sent to Heaven.

* * *

The drive was nothing short of awkward and silent. No one wished to say a thing, and thus, not a word was spoken. A few glances were thrown to the girl in blissful slumber not too far away from them. Her arms were folded expertly over her body, making her seem like Sleeping Beauty, the young, frail maiden who slept without worry until her beloved prince came and woke her with his kiss upon her lips. Yet everyone knew that the girl was by no means a "young, frail maiden".

She was not a princess born into royalty. She was not liable to faint from a fairy's curse of a prick of the finger. She had not a king or a queen who cared for her every day of her life. She had an eternal curse unlike the temporary one of the princess. The princess had not a grim accusation over her head. According to the document of her life, a few of them still unknown by most, she had masqueraded as a male for a majority of her life and gambled for a living. She never mentioned having parents, nor did it seem like they wished to know that she even existed with the way that she was abandoned. Her only "father" had been a clown. She had not a mother-figure in her life. Not only that, but she, who had worked endlessly to fulfill her promise to her "father", save the AKUMA, and live with her new family, now had to handle the accusation of being the Fourteenth, a member of the Noah family, the Black Order's worst enemy. Yet right then, as the van bumped slightly over the rocks and into the unavoidable potholes in the road, she slept on worriless.

Linali sat beside where Allen was dozing with a face of mixed emotions. She was joyful, frustrated, and gloomy all at the same time. The Chinese girl was joyful that her family had survived and Allen was alive, even after having that new innocence activated for the length of time that it was, frustrated that once again Allen had taken everything upon herself and hadn't told them about her gender, and gloomy because Allen hadn't told her and was now in a coma-like sleep. She hadn't been able to help at all.

"I hate it." Linali muttered.

"Huh? You hate what, Lili?" Lavi questioned while yawning.

"Why? Why didn't she tell us anything? Aren't we trustworthy," Linali cried as she turned to him, "Aren't we her family?! She doesn't have to hold everything! Doesn't she know that?!"

"She's used to it."

All heads, except Iglesias, turned to Kanda. He sat with one foot over his knee and his elbows sitting on his thighs, one hand lying across his legs, the other holding his face. He sighed for a second before turning to her.

"She's spent her whole life holding everything in. She held in her wish for real parents, she held in her wish to have a home, she held in her wish to be a girl. The one time she let her wish go…she got cursed…She's afraid of letting you in because that would mean revealing her wishes."

"What do you mean she got cursed when she let her wish go?"

Kanda stared at her before closing his eyes.

"It's not my right to tell you that."

"That's what Allen was crying about on the train, wasn't it?" Lavi inquired with a thoughtful gloom.

"…Yeah. She didn't ask me not to tell you, but unless she says I can, I'm not saying a thing. Got it?"

"Yes…but what do you mean she wished for real parents?" Linali hurried in.

'…Shit. The generals are listening, too. They aren't going to stop pestering me about this till I tell them, especially Tiedoll. Dammit.'

"…The moyashi was adopted by a hobo clown on the streets when she was young. When I say young, I mean something like those years where you can't even talk straight, when your still a little brat. Those bastards who didn't deserve to be parents disowned her because she was born with her innocence…abandoned her because of a fucking arm."

Everyone heard Nine growl slightly in disgust. Tiedoll's glasses had glossed over. Lavi and Krory looked shocked while Marie looked as irritated as a blind man could. Linali's fists were balling in her legs and Reever, Amela, and Iglesias looked as if they had smelled something spoiled.

"After that clown, she ended up with Cross, and you see how that went," Kanda grunted before falling silent.

"Who would do such a thing? Just because she had an innocence…" Linali muttered.

But while they all contemplated this, those in the van didn't notice the form that watched them as they headed for the docks.

* * *

Allen had gotten tired after the constant healing of Kanda's curse. Finally asleep, Neah watched the sleeping form of the young maiden resting in the garden of white and black roses with a sisterly gaze. Giving off a small smile, Neah stood up from her spot beside her and walked onto the stone pavement. She gave a short glance to the lake before taking a walk in the opposite direction.

Her white summer dress changed to her original one, with white frills near the collar and peeking from underneath the black the skirt of her dress and from the border of the corset she wore. Black high heeled boots were laced up and tied as perfect as one could get them. A deep red ribbon was tied around her neck and a pair of roses, one white, one black, were applied to the top hat upon her white hair. Her hair curled inward and outward in different areas, though the hair around her face curled toward it.

A white lace umbrella floated down from the sky, and she caught it by the handle while she strode. Putting both hands on it, she spun the handle, making the umbrella spin as well. She then began humming an unfamiliar song that seemed strangely familiar to the one Road sang.

The soft rumble of her voice through closed lips echoed in the area around her. As she strode along, she began passing by gates, each with a name at the top of them. One said Lavi, another said Komui, and others followed in the same fashion. Finally, straight ahead, she spotted the one she was looking for.

She added a small skip to her step once she saw it, her tune no longer being sung via humming. Her umbrella began to be spun just a tiny bit faster, her white eyes gleaming on her completely blackened face. A white toothed smile spread on her face.

_Sennen ko wa sagashiteru…_

She approached the gate before stopping before it, its rust crusting as she lazily dragged a finger across what used to be black metal.

_Daijin hearto sagashiteru…_

Slowly, a creaking din reverberated till the gate opening stopped. She stood in front of the gate, a grin even a more sinister than Dark Allen's spread across her face. She gradually slithered into the darkness that became available to her when she had opened it. The gate's name was Adam Noah.

_Wareware wa sore o sa remasu…_

The gate shut with a deathly groan.

* * *

"Will you please refrain from beating the AKUMA, Skinn? For one, you are deathly injured. For another, you shouldn't eat sweets all the time anyway," an annoyed Tyki muttered behind his book.

"Shut up. The egg ain't sweet," He threw another punch at the already torn up AKUMA.

"This homework is stupid! Tyki, do it for me~" Road sang, twirling her pencil.

"No." His answer was firm.

"Where's that cat? It's past dinner already!" Debitto yelled at the top of his voice.

"Lulu Bell! Where are you?!" Jasdero screeched, equally loud.

"She's asleep. Shut up."

"Now now, Tyki~ What's gotten you so upset?" the Earl asked in all his obese glory.  
At the question, all of the other members of the Noah family in the room turned to Pleasure's attention. He looked around before groaning.

"To be honest, I really don't know. There's just some antsy feeling in my gut."

But to tell the truth, antsy wasn't the word he really meant. In fact, he felt like something wonderful was going to happen but wasn't sure what. It felt tingly and though he wasn't used to such a feeling until he was about to kill someone or witnessing the bloody, horrible death of them. Why, then, was he feeling something like that then, when he was most annoyed.

"You must've eaten something bad, Tyki. At least you never get stomachaches…or homework for that matter," Road commented dejectedly, fiddling around with her pencil.

"Let me see this~ I will try my best!" the fattened man bellowed, tying a band that said "fight on" on his head before taking a look.

"Peh, I'll leave it to you guys." Debitto groaned, walking out of the room, Jasdero laughing animatedly after him. Tyki waved them off just for the sake of recognition.

After a few minutes, the Earl was writing furiously on the paper, answering questions in split seconds.

"Whoa…you're awesome, Earl!" Road cheered.

Skinn only grunted as he chewed on a lollypop and Tyki didn't respond at all.

Suddenly, Road noticed something wrong. There was an aura in the air that had just appeared, and it was the exact opposite of the aura that only hung around the mansion. Tyki had also felt it and found himself staring in the Earl's direction.

"Uhh, Millenni?" Road started.

"Yes, my dear?"

"Why are you writing "Neah" over and over again on my homework?"

The face he made when she said that was not one of surprise, but rather of malice. Looking upon the girl's homework, he found that after he had solved a math problem he had, in fact, begun to write those four letters. Abruptly, he heard the sound of a woman's voice. It was a voice that he hadn't heard in the longest time.

"_My…must you wear this horrible, grotesque form, Adam?" _

He jolted suddenly, startling the three in the room with him. The room, to his eyes, began to be covered in black. It crept up and around the walls, coating it like a shadow. At the other side of the room, dressed in black, white, and a beautiful deep red ribbon, was Neah. With her hat atop her head and her umbrella to the side, she stared at him with unblinking white eyes.

"Who…who are y-"

"_Oh, you know who I am, Adam James Noah. Do you not remember me?" _she giggled with a smile on her face as she approached him around the table, _"Well I guess I cannot blame you. It's been such a long time since we've seen each other."_

"…Neah…"

"_So you DO remember me! Somehow, that makes me feel a bit happy. Does that mean that you still hold on to a piece of yourself?"_ she asked, leaning close to him.

"This has always been me, Neah. You just didn't see it."

"_No. That's not true," _she sighed, putting a hand on his face and looking at him solemnly, _"You weren't always like this…you used to be my loving husband."_

"If I had known that you would betray me like you did, I wouldn't have married you."

She backed off for a second. Then with a disappointed huff, she threw her head to the side.

"_What on Earth happened to the father of my five children?"_

He smirked at that.

"You mean seven."

"_Seven?"_

"The two that I found out that were in your womb after you died. I went back, getting ready to discard your body."

* * *

_There were flames everywhere, the roof of the once magnificent mansion becoming nothing more than useless waste. There, in the middle of the destruction, stood a man. On the floor right before him was a dead woman. Scowling, he kicked the body a few times before he moved to rip it to shreds. Tearing open the flesh of her legs, he marveled at the blood and the muscle that he saw. Unable to resist the temptation, he continued laying waste to her body…that is, until he stopped at her stomach. Sitting in a protective film were two fetuses. They weren't that old, but had already formed arms and legs were beginning to develop. _

_She had been pregnant. _

_At first, he looked in awe, and then an unholy smile graced his lips. He had to move quickly, as to not let the children die. He quickly found a jar and the liquids temporarily needed to replace her body. The ripped the children from her womb and placed them in the jar. Laughing animatedly, he finally realized why she had that list of names in one of her journals. Thinking for a second, he decided that whoever was born first of the two would be named __**Desire**__, and the second born would be named __**Wisdom**__, as listed in the journal._

"_You have graced me with your last gift, oh fickle wife. I thank you for your humble donation!"_

_And with a manic cackle, he left her torn, deformed body behind as the roof finally collapsed._

* * *

He began laughing, his form having shifted back to his old one during telling of the flashback.

"I have to say, I had forgotten to thank you for them. They have grown considerably and will soon be ready to show off to the world. As of now, they are still in training, but soon enough, you will be able to see the last of your spawn! I thank thee, oh fickle wife!"

He could've sworn that he heard something snap.

Now, he had expected her to look horrified or begin to grieve and look at him with an angry face.

But he had not expected to see THAT look on her face. Nor did he expect the sword through his chest.

As he coughed out blood, the smirk on her face widened to unholy proportions. It rivaled any evil face that the children could make, and was grotesque enough to make even Satan roll in his cell in Hell. It was too horrible for even the Earl to describe. He was picked up out of his chair by the huge sword and slammed down on the table, where the blood began to seep into the table spread.

Sitting down beside him, she twisted the sword a bit just to watch him squirm. Laughing at his attempt to hide his agony, she leaned her monstrous, blackened face to his.

"_**You know, I thought that you would know that the children's personalities all came from my side of the family, or rather me. If they have those smiles that I know they make, they got it from me. If they have the tempers that I know they have, they got it from me. Don't you think that the origin of those personalities would be the worst of them all? My goodness, your ineptness amazes me."**_

Sitting up, her face softened back. She put her hands in her lap and stared calmly, if not boringly, at him.

"_I'm actually happy to know that they are still alive. That means that I can save them, too. But you, on the other hand," _she drawled as she stood on the table, her hands touching the hilt of the crossed sword, **_"I'm not sure if I even have the will to do that anymore."_**

She then pushed down. Hard.

A tortured cry sprang from his lips. He just couldn't hold it in. He knew that it wasn't his real body, but that didn't keep pain from sifting through him. He watched as she laughed manically above him, her expression having the ability to make Satan sob.

"_**I want to hear more. More! Cry aloud! Beg for forgiveness! It's like music to my ears!"**_

She sent a jolt of what was left of her past innocence through the hilt. That was enough to get her what she wanted.

**"AAAAAAGGGH! AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"**

She let out a howl of joy, something that she wouldn't have done if she hadn't snapped. The Earl began to feel regret. How could he imagine that the very woman that he thought he kill would haunt his mind and torture him? But just when he thought that it would continue, she plopped back to his level and lay down beside him. She ran a lazy finger over his facial features.

"_Oh why? Why can't I kill you now? Why can't I destroy what's left of you?"_

Her finger stopped.

"_It's because really, really, REALLY deep DOWN inside you…I know that the Adam Noah that I married all those years ago is still there. Killing you would not solve the problem, but release even more Dark Matter and destroy what's left of him..."_

Her expression had finally softened to a sad smile. Once the smile disappeared, she sat up, stood up on the table, and pulled the sword out of his chest.

At this, the Earl thought that he had a chance. Quickly, he materialized a sword, the same kind only with introverted colors, and thrust it at her body. He didn't expect it to go straight through her and not harm her in any way. She looked back at him as her sword disappeared.

"_What's left of me in this body is only memory and conscience. I don't have a solid form anymore. Besides, you are in my domain more than you are in your own. __**Don't test me, Earl.**__"_

Finally recognizing his condition, he collapsed with pain onto the floor as she walked to the closest wall. Turning around, she gave him a look. It was that of a firm will, her umbrella now in her hand instead of the sword.

"_Mark my words, Millennium Earl…" _she started, her body dissolving in mist and her expression hardening, _"We will kill you, even if it means killing my beloved Adam as well."_

With that, she left him.

* * *

Road, Tyki, and Skinn were at the fat man's side. Debitto, Jasdero, and Lulu Bell had rushed in upon hearing his cries. Large amounts of AKUMA were gathered around the outside of the room with worried looks on their faces. He had been crying out in agony while clutching his head and horns not too long ago, then he suddenly just collapsed on the floor.

"Millenni! What's going on?! LERO!" Road demanded furiously.

Behind the AKUMA, you could hear the muffled sounds of the pumpkin golem trying to get into the room. After finally breaking through the crowd, he took in the scene.

"What happened, relo?! I heard cries and…Earl-sama! TELL ME**,** RELO!"

They heard a groan from the floor.

"Earl-sama!" Lulu Bell jumped down from the table as she moved to his hand.

She pressed her paws to his palm. She timidly drew out one claw and pressed it as softly as possible to it. His eyes snapped open.

He sat up, snatching his hand away from the cat. Lulu Bell moved beside Skinn just in case he attacked her for what she did. But instead of lashing out at her, he roared curses out to the air.

"**That damned woman! How dare she come back to haunt me! I'll kill her! KILL HER!"**

"Who, relo?!"

"**NEAH! THE DAMNED FOURTEENTH!"**

At this Lero paused.

'Neah is alive, relo? My true master was alive? But where? How? I had seen her body. She was definitely dead, relo. But she came back from the dead? When? I want to know so badly. I want to return to her side, relo…'

Shaking his head, he got back to the conversation.

Everyone looked at the Earl in shock. No one had seen the Earl so angry before. The AKUMA cowered behind the doors and even the Noah cowered behind things. Road cowered behind Tyki, Jasdero behind Debitto, the both of them behind Skinn, and Lulu Bell ran to be caught in Tyki's arms.

After a few minutes of more cursing and rage, he calmed himself a bit. Putting a huge smile on his face yet again, he stood up and picked up his hat. Dusting it off, he placed it on his head. The purple rose that had been on it was crushed. Grasping Lero's handle, he moved him to his shoulder and laughed a bit.

"Uh…Millenni…are you okay now?" Road asked from behind her younger brother, who was trembling slightly.

"**OH, I'm just PEACHY, Road~ I feel WONDERFUL!"**

They couldn't tell. His voice was still deep and demonic.

"**I've decided something recently. The Heart of Innocence must have awakened! It's the only thing that I can think of that could've caused me that pain~ So I'll decide what we'll do~"**

He began walking out of the room and down the halls. The AKUMA hid from him behind doors and cowered if they couldn't hide. The Noah followed behind him, almost equally cautious of him.

"**Tyki?"**

He jolted just slightly.

"Yes?"

"**Did those AKUMA that we sent to Italica, Spain evolve? I saw one of them do so~"**

"I believe so. At least five of them did."

"**Well," **he suddenly turned around, facing him with glowing yellow eyes, **"Where are they~"**

"…They never sent anything…back…"

"**OH! I see," **he sang as he turned back around, **"Well, when I tried contacting them, they were DEAD~ I bet it was ALLEN WALKER! Weren't YOU supposed to kill him?"**

"I did…he came back…"

"**I see…well he really is truly troublesome, so I guess I won't blame you~ So, does anyone have any IDEA on where ALLEN WALKER is?"**

"M…master…"

Turning to the voice, there was a severely weakened level 4 AKUMA there.

"**What is it?"**

"He left…Spain…he and other…exorcists are heading…to Asia…"

An eerie laugh left the Earl's mouth.

"**Thank you~ You have made me happier, my creation! I shall-"**

But before he could finish, the skull on the soul, after having been through the stress of getting eaten at, finally broke, sending the soul to Heaven. The AKUMA collapsed and fizzled.

"**My, how rude. You could've waited until I had finished talking before you died. But that doesn't matter now~"**

Finally at his destination, the Earl and the Noah walked out onto the balcony. The moon shone a sickly color of yellow, the clouds making the moon seem even more eerie. Bats flew through the air and their screeching echoed throughout the vicinity.

"**I believe that the third part of my LOVELY play is beginning~ I must get Sheril and Wisely prepared for the final battle soon to come~ But now, there is someone who is trying to control MY play and end it all with me verse the Heart! If that is so, I shall make sure that the third part is the FINAL part! In MY play, all shall go by MY rules, and since The Fourteenth thinks that she can control it, I'll show her that I'M the one running the show! **

He turned around, a manic look on his face.

"**You AKUMA back there~ Make yourselves useful and attack those MICE that are heading to Asia. Kill every single one of them! NOT ONE IS TO BE LEFT ALIVE~"**

The AKUMA hiding took heed to the order and passed by their master to fly into the sky toward their greatest enemies.

In Allen's Dream World, Neah felt that something was afoot.

"_You think that you can control something that was never yours in the first place. This play of yours will end in your death."_

Turning to Allen's sleeping face, she watched as she shivered slightly before sighing in her sleep. Readjusting herself, Allen rolled to her back and continued sleeping. Neah smiled.

"_It seems like I'm not the only one who's excited~ Wake up soon, Allen."_

She looked up to the bright white moon, a serious look on her face.

"**You want to play, Neah?!"**

"_No one else can win without our assistance."_

"_**So…"**_

"_So…"_

"**LET THE GAMES BEGIN!" **_'LET THE GAMES BEGIN!'_


	11. The Road to the Asia Branch

**(6/22/13) Redid this chapter again; Also, my descriptions of Wisely and Sheryl come from Google. Sorry if they are wrong. :**

**12/28/12: You know the drill~:**

**I know that you all are saying this in your heads right now..."Well, it's about FUCKING TIME!" I am ASHAMED of myself right now~ Like seriously! It took me MONTHS to get this out. Just so you all know, listening to Hans Zimmer will get rid of ALL writers block. I'm glad I did, especially since today is my BIRTHDAY! Yep July 8th is my bday! When I posted this, it was almost 11:59, so technically, it was still my bday. XD LOL. ANYWAY I promise that I will NEVER take this long to post a chapter EVER AGAIN! It was a LOT shorter than I wanted, but chapter 12 will be a lot better since I have my inspiration back! YAYZ! So, please enjoy my birthday present to you all~**

**PS: Do you guys think I should make pictures of certain scenes in certain chappies on DA? Just wondering.  
-JD**

**Disclaimer: YOU KNOW THIS ALREADY. DON'T RUB IT IN.**

* * *

Kanda groaned. This was NOT how he had planned to spend his day. Screams of dying AKUMA and the sound of splattering blood surrounded him and filled his ears. Why had so many come for them anyway?

_Shhhiikkkk_

Another AKUMA fell dead. He watched as Linali flew up in front of him to kill one that was heading for him.

_CrrrrKKKK_

So many. So much blood. Looking down, he saw Tiedoll protecting the unconscious form of the white-haired girl. Her face was slightly pallid, possibly from the lack of food. Her body, luckily, wasn't deteriorating and it seemed as if her innocence was sleeping with her. Strange. Oh, here came another one.

_Swwwwwsssshhh_

Deep red blood fell on his face in rivulets. Being careful not to lick it, he wiped some of it off with his sleeve. Still, that didn't stop him from looking like Jack the Ripper covered in the blood of a virgin…or something. He landed back on the ground beside the van, which currently wasn't working due to an AKUMA shooting the front engine. Looking behind himself at the scientist and finders who were working on it and Lavi holding up what used to be the hood of the truck for protection, he glowered.

"How long is that DAMN thing going to be broken?"

"It's completely messed up. We may just have to leave it," Reever growled back, tinkering with parts of the engine.

"Fine then. Fuck the thing," the furious Japanese man turned to look at Tiedoll, "Hey! Bastard! We're gonna jet. Grab Allen and let's go."

He was just a tad bit surprised when Tiedoll sent him a look quite akin to the glare that he had just sent him. Guess he was a bit ticked off by the situation himself, and being called a bastard didn't make him feel any better.

"Miss Lee! Krory! Marie! Miss Nine! We're running for it!" he yelled as he moved Allen to a more comfortable position in his arms.

Krory swooped down and offered Lavi a ride on his back. Grinning sheepishly at him, Lavi accepted the offer. It wasn't like he could travel fast as he was. Especially not as fast as "Krowy".

Linali and Marie gave one last attack together, smashing five more AKUMA, before beginning to flee. Lau Shimin killed seven more, bloodying Nine and himself, before following the others as well. Once they were all running together, Iglesias began moving closer to the cluster.

"Okay, is everyone listening?!" she whispered to them, Timcanpy holding onto her shoulder.

They nodded quickly.

"This is how it's going to work. I have a bomb with me. Once I throw this on the ground, it will create a distraction and make a lot of dust come off of the ground. When that happens, I need Lau Shimin to dig a hole. I have a map and a compass, so we can follow the map on the inside of the tunnel. Also, when inside, I need General Tiedoll at the back to so he can use Enchanting Garden to keep any AKUMA from coming in. We could try to cover up the hole completely, but then we wouldn't be left with any air, so…"

"Don't worry about that. Enchanting Garden is a plant. As long as we breathe out carbon dioxide, it will create oxygen for us."

Iglesias blinked.

"Wow. Well, that's pretty useful! Please cover the whole hole opening then!"

"Yes, ma'am." he replied, smiling.

"Alright! On the count of three," she muttered.

The AKUMA began to sneer as they got closer. Cries of murderous intent were screeched into the air.

"One."

A level 4 began to creep in closer, seemingly communicating with a level 2 not to far from it.

"Two." Iglesias whispered as she raised a balled up hand to her neck.

The level 2 began to move in just a bit more as if it were waiting for something.

"THREE!"

Iglesias threw her bomb down, waiting for the dust to accumulate…

Only, it didn't touch the ground.

That sly level 4 had seen what they were planning and had a level 2 catch the bomb before it touched the ground. The bomb exploded in the AKUMA's hand, blowing chunks of blood and skin on the ground as it cried out in pain.

The level 4 gave the exorcists an eerie grin. All of the other AKUMA began to crowd in to attack them. The group stopped running once a level 3 blocked their way at the front. They were trapped in a circle. They all laughed together, making it ring in the air like a deathly bell. The leading AKUMA settled itself to the ground, enjoying the worried and angered faces of the humans they had surrounded.

Kanda drew Mugen and was ready to strike at any moment. Marie and Linali moved closer together, ready as well. Lau Shimin awaited Nine's orders while Krory moved his back closer to the others to protect the currently disabled Lavi. Reever and the finders moved closer to Allen, even though they only had guns while Tiedoll shifted toward the middle of the group, holding Allen tightly.

Even so, the leader AKUMA had caught on to this. It suddenly lurched forward to Tiedoll to grab onto Allen. Reever began shooting at it, but it didn't even flinch. It was moving so quickly, a good shot couldn't be made at it. The exorcists looked back at the scene in horror, unable to move from their spot to save them. Tiedoll rose his hand to summon his innocence, but it was moving entirely too fast for him to say it in time. In the heat of the moment, no one noticed Allen's shadow moving up her body to her cursed eye. Just when it was about to grab the girl…

Her eye snapped open.

The black cross on her left hand turned green as a ball, strangely will-o-the-wisp like in appearance, shot out from it. The level 4 froze in front of her, watching the ball with a sadistic curiosity. Then the glowing ball burst out becoming little specks that began surrounding her, a lot of them moving to her back.

Then…something green stabbed the AKUMA through its face. It screamed out in agony. The AKUMA and humans looked to the level 4 in surprise. Tiedoll shuddered as he felt Allen move in his arms. Releasing his hold on her slowly, she stood to her feet, her face down.

"Wha…she's…she's not even supposed to be moving!" Reever yelled in shock.

The AKUMA on the other side of the group screeched furiously and rushed toward the white haired girl. Talons ready and teeth gnashing, they reached out, not noticing the back of her hair flow strangely. Suddenly, three others were stabbed with a long, glowing green talon.

Allen's innocence was concentrated on her back, bunching up to become long and tail-like with a sharp talon at the end of each of the four. They pulled out of the newly injured AKUMA. Then, starting from the place they had been stabbed, green lines that looked strangely like the cracks in broken glass began to spread out all over its body until…they burst into pieces. The other, weaker AKUMA began backing up. Slowly, Allen turned her face to look behind her. Only one, glowing red eye was open.

They began to stab at the AKUMA as quick as a snake. Her attacks were spot on, not missing a single target. A level 3 began moving toward her to attack, but one of the talons moved toward it first. It grasped the back of the back of the talon, laughing as if it had won, but then a crackling sound entered his ears. Looking to its hand, it saw the same lines going up his arms like veins.

"**Don't get touched by them at all, you fools! The whole thing is poisonous! The whole thi-"**

Its voice was cut off due to it dying and exploding.

The other AKUMA screeched in panic, flying away as quickly as possible, but they couldn't escape those poisonous, green snakes. Exploding AKUMA resounded as their numbers became less and less until one was left. High up in the sky right by the clouds, it cackled.

"**You can't reach me up here, can you?! Those idiots didn't realize that those things are weak against height!"**

It didn't notice the talons floating absently near Allen, backing up slowly as if getting ready to strike.

"**You are WEAK! THOSE DAMN THINGS MEAN NOTHING UP HERE!"**

Suddenly, they thrust up from near her toward the AKUMA at a shocking speed.

"**I AM AN ULTIMATE! I AM AN AKUMA! I WILL DOMINATE YOU ALL UNDER THE NAME OF THE MILLENIUM EARL!"**

Allen's eye twitched at that name.

"**I WILL KILL YOU A-"**

Blood gushed from its mouth. It looked down to see two talons in its stomach. The other two were floating near its head. The talons twisted in its stomach and dragged the AKUMA down from the sky to right in front of her face. The others there watched in shock as they stared at each other.

"That name…"

Kanda, Lavi, Linali, Marie, and Reever's eyes widened…that wasn't Allen's voice. It was much too hateful to be her voice.

The AKUMA watched her in fear, its eyes searching hers. Allen's red eye gleamed with something very akin to hate, but her smile said otherwise.

"…means nothing to me."

Then, the two talons near the AKUMAs head did their job. It didn't explode, but it did fall dead once the talons came from its body. The talons flicked themselves off and floated a lot more easily. Then, all at once, it was over.

The talons burst into specks and became the will-o-the-wisp again and slowly descended to her hand. Once it entered Allen's darkened cross, it began glowing like a heartbeat. Allen's eye finally closed as she slumped slightly. Kanda, understanding what was going on, ran to her and held her body up as she fell unconscious again.

Her heartbeat was slowed as if she were sleeping, her shadow secretly moving back down her leg. Timcanpy moved from Iglesias' shoulder and flew to Kanda's arm, nuzzling his body against Allen's cheek worriedly. Kanda just stared down at the girl laying in his arms for a minute before looking up at the others who stared at her in shock.

"So," he drawled, "does anyone want to explain that to me? I have no idea what the fuck just happened."

"Her innocence…it must've awakened her for a short time. But that voice was different. That didn't sound like the Allen I know…the Allen we know." Linali deduced, trembling at the memory of that hateful voice.

"I never heard her speak that way…with such hate…" Lavi whispered.

"…That's not the only thing…" Marie murmured.

"Speak up, please." Nine requested.

"That's not the only thing…" Marie took in a breath, "Allen's voice that time was composed of two differentvoice tones…Allen wasn't the only one speaking…"

"But she had to be the only one speaking!" Linali interjected.

"We all know that, but I specifically heard two voices in one. Something else is going on with Allen as she sleeps."

"What did it sound like?" Lavi asked curiously, though he was scared.

"The other tone in Allen's voice was just slightly deeper. It sounded like an older woman…probably around her mid to late twenties. Its tone held just as much, maybe even more, malice than Allen's original tone held. It's something that I just cannot explain…"

Kanda knew that something had been up with her voice when he heard it…he just didn't know it was something like that. Looking down to the unconscious young woman in his arms, he began contemplating something else he had seen. Allen's shadow had reached up to activate her eye. He almost didn't believe it when he saw it, but with the voice change as well, things were looking suspicious. What was going on with her?

"Anyway, while we can contemplate this, we must do so elsewhere. Allen cleared up the AKUMA for us right now, so let's not waist her effort, especially all that she's been through so far. She must be tired after all. Now, let's make haste. Lau Shimin!"

Lau Shimin transformed into his innocence form as Nine climbed on his back.

"We will look for a resting place ahead. We'll get back to you when we find one. But for now, please head east."

And with that, the two jumped off to the sky.

Tiedoll sighed, looking back to Lavi.

"Are you okay back there?"

Lavi, exhausted from pain and too much going through his head, snapped out of his dazed look and smiled at the man holding him on his back.

"I'm fine."

Krory frowned at that. Lavi was beginning to speak less and less. Usually, he would go off into a whole conversation with that kind of question, but now he was reduced to the normal "I'm fine." His condition was getting worse. They needed to get to the Asian Branch…and fast.

* * *

"Shit…"

It wasn't common for Komui, the man with the currently empty bunny coffee cup, to curse. But right then, he just plain felt like it. The American Branch was being guarded by AKUMA and the closest Branch they could get to was the Asian Branch…but that was marginally further away from the American Branch. With Allen being the Heart of Innocence, she needed to be brought to a safer place immediately. At that moment, it was almost as if the Order was ASKING the Millennium Earl to attack them.

He also had no adorable sister to love. And help with his coffee.

The LOVE part being much more important.

"Supervisor Komui! We have a dilemma!" a scientist yelled as he ran it, arms full of papers.

"Yes, what is it?" he responded, his voice glum.

"We have so much work to do in so little time…we…dear I say it…NEED A KOMURIN!"

At this, Komui's face perked up and he smiled.

"Well~ I guess I should start constructing something then~"

He hopped off to his secret lair, better known as the lower science unit, to begin his blueprints. Everyone in the room sighed. He needed to be more cheerful. They knew it was hard letting his sister go on that mission in the first place, and due to the delay, he had become antsy. Even if it meant hurting them in unspeakable ways in the long run, such as trying to make them macho, beautiful, or extra clean, and over all cause injuries to all the people there, at least Komui was somewhat…  
A crowd of scientists ran after Komui to stop his construction.

* * *

AKUMA left the Noah mansion in hoards, screeching with glee and bloodlust, having not yet heard of the deaths of those who had not too long ago attacked the wanted exorcists. The infamous Noah clan stood back and watched them leave. Well, it wasn't all of them there, just Tyki and Road. Tyki was smoking from his usual packet of cigarettes and Road was lying over and arm chair, petting Lero on the head, ignoring his fussing. Her eyes moved from Lero to Tyki, watching his gruff expression with interest.

"What's with you, Tyki?" she inquired.

He removed the cigarette from his mouth as he blew out a circle against the empty, grey sky, the window not helping the melancholy as he watched monsters fly to the air.

"Nothing."

"Oh, sure there is, Tyki. I can tell," she giggled.

"No, nothing is bothering me."

"Your left eye twitched. It only twitches when I'm annoying you or you're lying."

His left eye twitched.

"Oh, now I'm annoying you, huh?"

"Yes. You are. Now stop asking questions," he huffed, blowing out another puff, only it resembled a cloud more.

"…Is it about Milleni?"

Tyki gave her a slow glance, and then went back to staring outside.

"It is, isn't it," Road inquired, sighing as she let Lero go, ignoring his ranting, "I guess I can't blame you. He did seem very weird last night. He seemed mad. Like some sort of mad dog that had gotten his toy taken away…"

"Well that's an understatement. I'm just wondering who the hell that 'Neah' woman was that he got so angry."

"It's like he had a different face. Do you think he's hiding something from us?"

Moving the cigarette back to his mouth, he looked down at it, sighing as he realized that it had reached the near end. Snuffing it out, he turned to Road.

"If he is, it's definitely about that 'Neah' bitch."

"Neah is not a bitch, relo!" Lero snarled.

The two Noah looked up to the floating pumpkin umbrella, watching him fluster, realizing his mistake. But the poor thing couldn't help himself. Neah had been a perfectly great master. Absolutely the best. Lero watched with wary eyes as Road sat correctly in her seat and Tyki glared at him, approaching him with slow steps.

"You know about this 'Neah' person?" Tyki asked, his eyes demanding.

"Umm, well…uh…it seems…I've just forgotten what this conversation was a-RELLLO!" Lero screeched as he was grasped firmly around his 'waist'.

"Don't play jokes with me. That look he gave me last night was completely unholy. Not that he's holy in any way, but…you know…he seemed even worse than usual in his anger."

"Yeah. I rarely see Milleni lose his temper, and even then, he's never showed it to us," Road said monotonously, standing from her seat to stand beside Tyki.

"So, I'm going to ask you one last time…" Tyki growled.

The two Noah, standing in a monotonous room as the screeches and cries of bloodthirsty AKUMA flew to the sky indefinitely as the room lost its color to become almost shades of grey, put onto their faces the darkest grins that they could, their eyes becoming like empty white circles and their grins stretching to unholy proportions on their tar colored faces, scaring Lero down to his hilt.

"**Who is Neah?**"

* * *

Elsewhere in the mansion, two people were having tea after a training session, the only lights in the room being the occasional floating candle, courtesy of Road.

One had white hair held back by a scarf that reached down his back, having black and white stripes like a zebra. Wearing white, almost vest-like clothing over the upper half of his body that exposed the snakelike tattoo that he had wrapping around his waist, he wore baggy white pants that black parts to it which wrapped around his calf above his ankle, leading to white flats. But the most extraordinary thing about his appearance was the glowing, bright green eye that sat on his forehead. There were several rings in the iris, the sclera black in color.

His companion looked more ordinary, having his long, black hair drawn back into a partial ponytail, his top looking a lot like the other male's, only longer. His pants were less baggy and had on the same flats, only in a bigger size.

The two men sat in chairs near each other, drinking to their hearts desires after having destroyed another training room along with a few humans. There were dents in the walls, blood splatters all over the place, and bones lying in unnatural positions. The decaying bodies were been eaten by the lesser AKUMA.

"When do you think that the Earl will let me leave this room?" the blond haired one groaned, sitting lopsidedly in his white wire chair. He was frustrated that he had to kill all those people just to get approval to leave.

"I'm not sure. I heard from him that it would be very soon. If you killed enough, you'd been out long ago," the other one calmly replied, sipping his tea, not bothered by the way he killed the dead men behind him.

"Shut up," Wisely replied smartly.

Just then, the doors to the room were flung open, banging on the wall behind them. Standing in the light of the outside world was the Millennium Earl himself. Upon seeing the destruction, his already mad grin went manic. The two unconsciously shivered at his reaction.

"**Wisely! Sheryl! My beloved followers, come with me!" **he cackled, still oh so very angry about what Neah had done.

The blond one, Wisely, set his tea down as he sat up, while the other, Sheryl, stood to his feet and began moving closer to him with a confused frown on his face.

"**Come now! Daylight is BURNING away~"**

The two Noah followed behind him quickly, Wisely actually a bit scared of his current anger. Sheryl just couldn't decipher why the Earl was so tense. It was quite obvious in his voice. As they followed the morbidly obese man down the halls of the mansion, they heard him hum something close to Road's 'Heart Song'. Reaching the main office, with phones floating in the air aimlessly, and a rocking chair shifting slowly in the background, the Earl suddenly turned around.

"**Say…now that you've destroyed your training room…would you like a BIGGER playground? There's so much more to DESTROY out there~ What do you think?"**

The two gave him grins that only Noah could give, despite their confusion of the situation, suddenly realizing what he was implying.

"Why yes! That is a lovely deal, my Earl!" Sheryl laughed.

"Do we get to crush the 'Heart'?" Wisely asked, honestly wondering.

The Earl paused, putting a thick finger on his cheek, thinking. Then, smiling an absolutely evil grin, he cackled.

"**Why YES~ In fact, I'll make this announcement to everyone!" **he giggled wholeheartedly, shifting into the darkness of his office, eyes glowing a deep, harvest moon yellow.

"**ANYONE who DESENEGRATES the 'Heart' from existence will get a WONDERFUL PRIZE!"**

Then the heavy wooden doors shut in their faces, nearly hitting Wisely in the nose. Sheryl stood in his spot, snapped out of his grin. Wisely backed up animatedly before grumbling.

"Dammit, always with the theatrics…nearly broke my fucking nose."


	12. Nap Time's Over

**12/28: I basically rewrote the story in a matter of seven hours. Previously for this author's note:**

**WHOALY FRIKKEN CRAP. THIS IS LATE. I am serious when I say that I'm ashamed that I couldn't upload cause of school work... I meant to update it on Black Friday, but I realized too late that my grandmother's house was a dead zone. XD**

**Not to mention that it's been...what? Three months? YEAH! Like three months since I actually put up a new chapter for this! I apologize immensely! I had updated my other two active stories on Halloween, but that's because the chapters for those are shorter! This is my long chappie story~ :)**

**And, if it makes you happy, it turns out that I outdid myself a bit...this chapter was 13 PAGES LONG IN MICROSOFT WORD. There are 8,783 words in this chapter...over a THOUSAND MORE than my past longest chapter, Chapter 10. *does my happy dance* X)**

**Anywho~ I also looked back at some of my past chapters, and I realized something...I SUCKED at writing when I first started. So, as a Christmas gift to y'all, I'm planning on revising my first three or four chapters...or however many I decide...depends on how much I sucked...And, if I can fit it in, I'll try my best to get in the 13th chapter as well~ That'll be tough, since I want to update all of my active stories for Christmas, so if it's not on Christmas, most likely, it'll be on New Years. ;)**

**And might I say that I adore you people? You've all been encouraging me this whole time, even though it was taking a long frikken time to update, and been telling me that my story is great and whatnot even though I sometimes think that is sucks. You've all been telling me that it's okay when I was going through some hard stuff and that y'all hope that I updated soon... (=.=)**

**YOU PEOPLE ARE AWEEEEEEESOME~ *hugs and kisses* (^O^)  
So now, I'll go ahead and shut up so that you can enjoy the newest chappie~ I hope you like it!~ Oh, and if you see any errors in it, please let me know~ I like constructive criticism~ It helps me write better~ (^.^)**

**And if you are just here to flame, they will be used to light a Molotov Cocktail. Guess who I'm throwing it at? :D**

**Disclaimer: ...Really? No. I don't own -Man. Wish I did tho. ;)**

**ALSO. Before I go...has anyone seen the newest chapters of -Man? BISHI KANDA FTW! *fangirls*(^u^)**

**EDIT NOV. 29, 2011: Ha ha...haha...ha. There was an error in the chapter that the lovely Xcruse pointed out to me~ Thankies, Xcruse! As I said, I do accept constructive crit, so errors within the story are accepted as well~ I corrected it now. XD**

**Oh. And it seems that it'll take maybe a bit longer before I start on the story revisions. Right now, I'm on my sister's computer doing this stuff. My computer died last Sunday. BUT DON'T WORRY~! I think my new one is supposed to come in some time this week! (=o=)**

**A moment of silence for my old, 2005ish, twitchy, having speakers but somehow managed to make random stops within the whole song and pause without my consent before continuing the song, totally ruining the image that I was making in my head with the song, half the time went slowly because its memory was slow as FUUUUU-, heating too quickly, harddrive crashing because its old as FUUUUU-, and overall totally craphead of a computer... (=.=)  
All done! (^.^)**

**I don't know what my new computer's going to be yet, but it'll be from 2011 I think! That idea alone makes me do the happy dance~ (^o^)**

* * *

"_Hm, hm, hm, hm, hmmhmm hmmhmm hmmmmm~" _Neah hummed as she played around with the hilt of her lovely, white lace umbrella.

She had a little pep to her step as she skipped along inside of Allen's dream world, Allen following not too far behind, humming as well. She looked a lot better, her skin taking on a creamy hue. She was happy that Neah was in such a good mood.

Just as she thought that, said woman turned around suddenly, closing her umbrella. The plain white circles that were her eyes on her tar-black face were completely round in seriousness, her mouth a thin white line. Allen paused in her walking to look at her past self questioningly.

"_You know you didn't have to let me out," _Neah said, her gaze unmoving, _"So why did you allow me to?"_

Allen smiled lightly, "Well, you hate AKUMA as much as I do. I felt that it was unfair for you to just sit inside me all day. Besides, I couldn't move on my own just yet. That makes this a win-win situation, don't you think?"

Neah jolted a bit, remembering the information that she had failed to tell her incarnation.

"_A-ah…well…thank you."_

Allen's attention trained even more on her past form.

"_I haven't…well…exactly been…sitting still per se…" _Neah murmured under her breath, fiddling with her pointer fingers.

"Huh?"

"_There's an ability that I was hoping that you would notice later, but I guess I'll tell you about it now~" _Neah suddenly giggled, hiding the fact that she felt busted.

She then grabbed Allen's hand in her own, heading down another pathway of the white stone road. Said girl tried her best to keep up with Neah's speed walking as best as she could without falling.

"W-whoa! Hold it! Where are we going?" Allen gasped.

"_You'll see when we get there~"_

As they traveled down the white stone road, Allen began seeing gates. The metallic colors of the gates, ranging from glittery silver to masculine bronze, gleamed in the rays of the white moon in her inner world. Even as majestic as it looked, it was still quite confusing as to why there were only gate doors and never an actual gate creating a closed in area.

Neah had stopped, unknowing to Allen due to the fact that her attention was on the gate doors. Neah giggled when she finally realized that where they stood on the pathway was where she had intended to take her. Allen turned around in a full circle, inspecting her surroundings. Her eyes widened slightly as she read the inscriptions at the top of each gate, made of whatever metallic material was used for the gate door.

'Lavi…Linali…Tiedoll…Kanda…'

The names of several people she knew were made into designs at the top of their respective gates. Lavi's gate looked like it was made of copper, its reddish tone glowing in the moonlight. Linali's gate was made of titanium, Tiedoll's of chromium, Kanda's of tin. Allen chuckled at Kanda's gate being made of tin, his gate being as cold as his personality.

She continued to search, the names of more and more people becoming recognizable to her. Names like Komui, Reever, even Fou showed up. But then, ever more shocking names showed up.

'…Road? Tyki? Jasdebi?!'

Even the names of the Noah children and family cat showed up. But…why? Why was Neah showing her this? She turned to her past self for answers, questions in her eyes. She didn't have to voice anything for Neah to know.

"_These are all gates into someone else's mind. Your…our powers transcend time and space. God had created the Heart of Innocence this way. Road's powers are only a tidbit of what we can do."_

"…What are you saying? I can…brainwash someone?"

"_Well, yes. But I don't think we wish to do that. Do we?"_

"No…unless we find the door to Master Cross…" Allen began giggling sinisterly.

"…_Come now. That's not holy at all."_

"Fine…" she groaned.

Neah felt sweat roll down the side of her face. After all, she had done something quite unholy herself not too long ago. She coughed a bit before continuing her explanations.

"_Anyway, I believe that this could be a perfectly fine way to begin to bring the kids back to their senses. To be honest, I'm not exactly sure how this will work out, but this is one of the closest shots we have."_

"Won't they notice that it's me? I mean, it may not be favorable to suddenly find your worst enemy in your brain…" Allen inquired, shuddering as she thought about what could go wrong.

"_Well, they know you…but they don't remember me." _Neah sighed.

"Ah that's…oh. I…see. Are you sure that you're okay with this?"

Neah smiled at her incarnation.

"_Why yes, it's fine. You can go into the minds of your friends when you need, and I'll begin assisting you here by slowly reminding the kids who they are. That way, when you see them, they will already be questioning what is really going on. But why would you ask such a question? Are you worried about me?"_

Allen looked to the ground. Her head nodded slowly, and Neah drew a warm smile on her inky face and hugged her incarnate tightly.

"_Thank you once again, Allen-chan."_

* * *

Linali shot through the air at sound speed, destroying another three level 2 AKUMA. Below her, the group of exorcists was running for the Asia Branch. As Linali floated in the air, inspecting for any more airborne AKUMA, she smiled at the sight of the building they've been looking for just a few hours off in the distance. They'd probably get there by very early morning tomorrow. Her happy thoughts were interrupted by a grim, crackly voice.

"**You exorcists think you guys can win. Don't you know? This play is run by the Millennium Earl!"**

The AKUMA promptly felt a metallic shoe against its head. The Chinese girl had a smirk that she only had when she held the upmost confidence in herself.

"Sorry. I didn't study my script."

With a swift slash of her heel down its body, the AKUMA's guts spilled to the earth.A satisfied smile on her face, she flew further ahead of the group to keep a look out. Pretty soon, they would all be relatively safe.

When Lavi looked up through the deep green trees and saw her flying ahead in the nearly clear sky, he smiled and moved his head back near Krory's.

"Krowy~ Lili-chan destroyed all of the aerial AKUMA for now. You can't eat right now."

Krory groaned, his stomach growling. Since he had self-elected himself to carrying Lavi, he hadn't been able to fly up high and drink AKUMA blood as much as he wished, and the "rabbit" knew this. Readjusting Lavi on his back, he continued forward, not noticing the troubled look on the redhead's face.

'I'm starving him, staying on his back like this. If I didn't have this injury, I could've had everyone ride on Ozuchi Kozuchi and extend our way there but…,' his thoughts broke, staring at his wrapped wrists that were even then starting to bleed through just the slightest bit, ' my wrists hurt so much I can barely move them. Especially with the blood crystals developing in them…I wonder what my new innocence will look like.'

"I can hear a swarm coming. Prepare yourselves!" Marie called up to Linali.

But she already saw them.

"INCOMING!" Linali yelled from above.

Nine quickly activated Lau Shimin and jumped on its back, holding on to its fur as the monkey hopped to the tops of the trees. The scientist and finders brought out their improved talisman barriers, ready to hold back any attacks as necessary. Tiedoll adjusted the way he held Allen in his arms, readying his innocence. Kanda placed his hand on Mugen's hilt as Marie prepared his innocence strings. Other than hurried footsteps, rustling trees, and the distant whirr of Linali flying through the air, there was no sound.

…

Out of the blue, the forest erupted with the sound of war.

Battle cries, scraping metal, manic laughter, all these came from the attacking AKUMA. There were almost all levels of AKUMA coming in the swarm, some of them connecting with each other to make Big AKUMA. All together they sang in a grotesque song with a discordant beat…

"**The Millennium Earl will take your souls! THE MILLENNIUM EARL WILL KILL YOU ALL! YOU'RE DOOMED! YOU'RE DOOMED! YOU'RE ALL DOOMED TO DEATH!"**

"Holy shit…it's the AKUMA parade." Kanda grumbled under his breath, drawing out Mugen.

"Hey, can one of you guys carry me for a bit?" Lavi asked suddenly.

"Huh? What do ya mean?" Amela asked, huffing from her anxiety.

Lavi smiled, moving his arm painfully to point at Krory's face.

His expression almost made the three flinch. His scowl was distorting his face, his teeth gleaming with want. The blood of those AKUMA must've been calling him quite vehemently. He was even snarling with hunger.

"You can get on my back. Iglesias, you can hold two, right?" Reever asked, handing the talisman to her.

"Of course I can. Don't even worry about it," she responded, grasping the device in her right hand.

"Krory, you can hand Lavi to me and go off if you wan-"

The next thing he knew, Lavi was clinging to his back as Krory jumped up to the sky, fangs bared.

Lavi giggled, "Aren't we energetic?"

It was going to be a very long night.

* * *

The Asian Branch was in an uproar. Scientists were preparing rooms and food with quickness that they had almost never seen. They were tripping over themselves and others just trying to get to their duties. Now, what could the cause of all of that be? It's quite simple actually.

A few minutes ago…

_BAM!_

"ACK! What on Earth just knocked into my head?!" Bak growled indignantly.

Most of the scientists, who were currently gathering files and objects, moving them around calmly, said or yelled out things like "boxes!" or "files probably" not really thinking about their answers, but Lou Fa, who had been beside him when the impact had landed, looked up to the top of the Chinese man's head. Her eyes widened as she held her papers in her left arm and pointed to his head with her right hand.

"I-it's Timcanpy! Timcanpy!"

Everyone froze and took a careful look at their leader's head. Sure enough, Timcanpy was frantically running around in a circle on top of his head, stopping to occasionally chew at the strange golden strand of string that came from his hat. Bak reached up and grasped the golden yellow orb, placing him on the desk in front of him with care.

"Timcanpy…is there som-"

He didn't even get to finish the sentence before the globe opened his mouth and began to show the recorded video.

The first thing they saw was Allen's face and shoulders, the white dress shirt she had on unbuttoned to reveal the slight corner of the medical wraps that were around her chest. Her skin was quite pallid, grey bags prominent under her eyes. Her hair was ragged, and she overall looked like someone had sucked the life from him, yet, she looked so peaceful, as if she were an insomniac getting the first bout of sleep that she's had in a while, which, in fact, was somewhat true. You could hear slight huffing from above Timcanpy. When he looked up, the watchers saw a slightly tired Tiedoll, running as he clutched his activated innocence with one of his hands. He looked down to the young woman he had in his arms and smiled in a fatherly way. Then suddenly taking notice to Timcanpy, he began to speak.

"Timcanpy, please do us a favor. We need to get Allen to safety as soon as possible, along with Lavi as well. They aren't in the best of shape. Please take a video ahead of us to the Asian Branch. It is best if they have everything prepared for our arrival."

The camera made a nodding motion before flying to hover above the group. They sure did look tired. Reever was holding tightly onto the redhead who had taken residence on his back, said redhead wincing in pain from his wrist, which were starting to bleed through the wraps put around them. Two finders were holding onto talismans, fending off the showers of AKUMA bullets with angry looks on their faces. Marie was killing the AKUMA that got too close to the scientists as Kanda slashed like a murderer at the AKUMA that got too close to Allen and Tiedoll…but mostly Allen.

Timcanpy, after getting a ground scene of the situation, took flight back to Allen, nuzzling her face a bit. The girl, surprisingly, smiled just a tiny bit as she huffed out a whisper that only he seemed to hear.

"…Tim…"

Bak gasped. Her voice was so…at peace. She sounded so at peace it was ridiculous. That silent whisper had been a melody all in itself.

Timcanpy seemed to reluctantly fly away from his shoulder, catching up with the aerial fighters. To say that the battle was brutal was an understatement. Whole parts of the forest were cleared out due to flames and the simple knocking down of trees. Gigantic AKUMA were battling with the Giants of Maker of Eden. Hoards of bullets were hurled at the group below, as well as three figures that were flying through the sky.

Timcanpy passed by his owner's other companions as he flew toward the Asian Branch. First, there was Nine and Lau Shimin, who had been in the process of clashing two AKUMAs' heads together while slashing another open with his feet. Nine then directed her innocence to attack another four heading their way. They weren't battling particularly to win, just enough to be able to pass through, yet even that seemed to be toilsome.

Timcanpy zipped around till he was beside the area where Krory was fighting. He seemed to be enjoying himself, taking little sips of their blood before disposing of them, allowing himself to taste the differences between the different levels of AKUMA. His grin was nothing short of vampiric, the anger and glee evident in his facial expression. The scientists watching the video shuddered.

Finally, just as the ball was about to leave the battlefield, he passed near Linali, kicking the AKUMA with expert aim. The butterflies on the backs of her boots flamed relentlessly as AKUMA body parts fell to the ground with a thud. She looked to the side and saw Timcanpy, and then began to smile, waving at him before she killed another one that had its mouth open. Then, just before Tim cut off his camera, looking forward, he gave them the accidental glimpse of a Level 5. It was gnashing its teeth together, talons out and beginning to swipe at Timcanpy.

The video cut off at that.

Lou Fa had dropped her papers at the sight of the Level 5. Other scientists cowered in horror of what they had just gotten a glimpse of. Bak's face, on the other hand, was completely stiff with seriousness. He turned to the microphone that was on the desk that Tim sat on, turned it on its highest and began speaking into it.

"Attention. Cease whatever you are doing, unless if doing so would result in explosion. A group of exorcists who have been out on a mission for weeks are coming to take refuge here. They have acquired the Heart of Innocence and are being met with barricade of AKUMA. They are making it through it, but need medical attention when they arrive. Get yourselves ready!"

The instant his speech ceased, the scientists burst into action. They had either finished packing up files or abandoned them all together to get rooms finished to make the exorcists as comfortable as possible. Yet, not everyone was moving.

Lou Fa was still stuck to her spot as others passed by her left and right. Allen had looked…so tired. They all looked tired, but Allen looked as close to death as he could. He must've had a large chest wound for the wraps that she saw at the edge of the video to elevate Timcanpy so much when the recording first opened. What had happened to him? What had happened to all of them? Would they get to the Branch on time? Would they survive?

"Lou Fa!"

"Y-yes?!" she stuttered, startled out of her worry.

She looked up anxiously to Bak, noting the firm look on his face.

"You are worried about them, Allen mostly, correct?"

The blush that spread out on her face told him everything. Even though she knew Allen was a female, the white-haired young woman had become somewhat of an idol for her.

"Well, if you're so worried about her," he started, moving his face closer to her startled one, "then why aren't you preparing for her arrival?"

Lou Fa looked to her shoes for a second, her feelings running through her like a speeding car. Then, realizing what he meant, she stared him straight in the eyes. He was right. In order to make her comfortable when she got back, it was essential that she got everything ready for her, and that meant moving.

"Yes sir!"

She then placed her files in a box before hurrying over to the bedrooms.

Bak stared at her retreating body with a wry look on his face, sighing. He turned around to face away from the hallway that she ran down, a smile creeping on his face.

* * *

"We're nearly there! Oh thank God, I can see two of them waiting! There's more people gathering up as well!" Linali gushed, her face showing renewed hope as the scientists of the Asian Branch began gathering things together for their arrival on the rarely used outside platform they had on the side of the building, morning just beginning to show its head.

"Tiedoll, when I say so, we need you to use Embracing Garden to pick everyone up, okay?" Nine yelled as Lau Shimin destroyed a Level 2.

"Yes ma'am," he replied, his innocence glowing more so than before.

He knew that the condition of the mortally wounded exorcist with them was getting worse and Allen hadn't woken up since she seemingly snapped two days ago. Lavi was cringing as he did his best to hold onto Reever's back, though his fingers were becoming numb from the pain in his wrists.

"C'mon, hold on a bit longer, Lavi!" Reever gasped out, feeling his hold loosen as his hands began slipping.

"I'm tryin'…but…it hurts…"

"I know. Just hold on as much as you can!"

Lavi was about to respond when all of a sudden he cried out in agonized pain He dropped from the man's back onto the grass as he continued screaming, curling in a ball from the sensations ripping through his body. Reever turned around abruptly, reaching for the redhead, pausing when he saw the condition his wrists were in, not noticing a level 3 hide back into the trees.

Large crimson crystals the length of his fingers and the width of his eyes had torn through the wraps around his wrists, wet and dripping with what was undoubtedly his blood. Iglesias and Amela paused in their running, looking back to the two men.

"Reever, hurry up and pick him up before I get back there and pick him up myself! We have to MOVE!" the Spanish woman growled, her patience running thin, "I know he's hurt, but if we don't get to that Branch soon, all of us are as good as dead!"

A Level 3 dropped down in front of the women, grinning eerily at them as it began punching the shields. At this point, the relatively calm and quiet Amela lost her temper. She used her right hand to grab the gun she had in her holster, moved her shield to the side, and with expert marksmanship, aimed at one of its seven eyes.

"OH FUCK THE BLOODY 'ELL OFF!"

It screamed in pain as blood spurted from its eye. She shot five more rounds, effectively blinding six of the seven eyes it had. Knowing that her gun was a six shooter, she held it in her mouth as she emptied and reloaded the gun with one hand. Just as the beast was about to attempt to kill one of the two women, Amela aimed in a split second, taking out its last eye.

As it cried out once more, the finders looked at each other, nodded, then moved together and rushed at the blinded AKUMA, ramming it with the shields, easily pushing it back due to its lack of effective footing. It screeched as they pushed it closer to Marie, who had noticed the regular humans stop further back. Using Noel Organon, he wrapped the strings around its neck, slicing it off almost in an instant. Its body twitched before exploding, leaving its bloody remains all over the shields before they easily slid off.

By then, Reever had picked Lavi up again, and had watched with an astonished expression on his face. Lavi, though his eyesight was blurry from fatigue and tears, smiled lopsidedly.

"A-ah…w-women…sure are…s-scary…"

'Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, my mother once told me,' Reever thought, rushing to keep up with the miffed ladies.

"Can't you stay out of fuckin' trouble back there?!" a very pissed Kanda growled, moving to protect a bit more at the back.

He almost shuddered at the glares that the female finders gave him. Almost.

"Well excuse us, your FUCKIN' MAJESTY! It just so 'APPENS that we aren't compat'ble with any INNOCENCE!" Amela screamed, her temper reaching way past its peak.

"Just shut the hell up, you damn prick," Iglesias finished.

Kanda blinked owlishly at them, his tell-tale glare still etched onto his face, but made no other comment. He, too, had heard that Hell had no flames that can compare to a woman's anger. He distantly registered Lavi snickering silently. He wouldn't hurt him now…not until he was better.

The group was just then finally within the final stretch to the Asian Branch, at least twenty scientists outside with shields protecting them from the onslaught of AKUMA bullets. Nine counted within her head, trying to find the perfect moment to have everyone raised up to the platform. The AKUMA above them were beginning to come down closer, trying to stop them from getting to safety, yet Linali, Krory, Marie, and she were dealing a great amount of damage to the monsters. Finally, when she deemed the timing right, she turned to Tiedoll, an expectant look in her eyes. He nodded back to her, knowing exactly what she wanted.

"_Maker of Eden: Embracing Garden!_"

Off in the distance, just as the last Large AKUMA fell, the Giants disappeared into smoke, creating a short bout of smog to blind any more AKUMA heading in from that way. The white vines customary for his innocence began to appear, picking up everyone who was on the ground to raise them to safety.

"Linali, Krory, Marie! Fight as hard as you can! They'll begin attacking even harder now that we're heading up!" Nine yelled.

The other three exorcists nodded in recognition, noticing almost immediately that she had been correct, more Level 4's and 3's coming down from the higher portions of the air to give their wholehearted attempts.

Tiedoll kept his eyesight trained on the platform, waiting as they approached it, though his vines seemed to be going slower than he wanted.

"General Tiedoll! There's AKUMA trying to pull the vines down!" Amela called to him from further back, looking over the edge of the floor of vines, watching Level 4s pull and tug relentlessly at the white, normally creeping plants, though they did screech and cry at being pricked by the thorns on said plants.

AKUMA bullets had begun to fall upon the rising garden, leaving those using it for leverage to run, bouncing around like crickets to avoid getting shot while holding up their now cracking shields. Tiedoll knew that he couldn't do much more to help, as his energy was being drained from using his innocence to raise them up in the first place. He winced slightly, feeling one of the vines break from a Level 4 managing to crush it. The ones flying in the air were slowly getting closer to them, their smiles spreading on their faces even though Linali, Krory, Marie, and Nine were doing their best to defend them and were causing a large amount of damage on the enemy side. They had even begun to sing their little parading song again. He frowned, knowing that they were standing on the last threads of their luck.

"**The Millennium Earl will take your souls! The Millennium Earl will kill you all! YOU'RE DOOMED! YOU'RE DOOMED! YOU'RE ALL DOOMED TO DEATH!"**

Allen groaned slightly in his arms.

Looking down in shock, he barely recognized her eyes open just slightly, catching sight of the AKUMA as her eyes changed from their silvery blue color to her left becoming completely red, the right, completely green. They were the brightest, though still dulled, he had seen them, especially since the last two times that he saw her awake. With a sigh, she reclosed her eyes almost like she were slowly waking up as he felt her left arm pulse with heat. Looking to her hand, he saw the green will-o-the-wisp that seemed to be customary for her innocence as of recent escape from it. It pulsated above her hand a few times before mist came off of it, splitting itself into two, the part that came off being smaller than the other. The bigger of the two floated back down to her hand, slipping inside of the cross 'tattoo' and into her body, while the other floated to the vines that made up Embracing Garden and dispersed into mist inside of it.

It only took a few seconds for her innocence to take effect.

The AKUMA who had been pulling on the vines to break them suddenly screeched and screamed louder than they had before, that is, before the sound of something wet bursting followed after it. The vines began writhing more, moving much faster to get them to the platform. The creeping plants adopted a glowing green tint to them as the thorns on the sides became larger. It also seemed to become more flexible in its use. Just as a Level 4 was about to land onto the vine floor, grinning madly as it prepared to kill the exorcists as soon as it could, the vines above the area where it was floating glowed green furiously as it suddenly grew larger spikes and moved away from its originally composed state to one of life. It wrapped around the Level 4 as if it were an octopus, its spikes piercing its skin painfully. It cried out in agony as it attempted to escape its grasp, yet the beast was as good as dead when a collection of the vines wrapped around it like a closed rose. AKUMA blood promptly began spilling from the tiny cracks in between the vines.

Linali, who was soaring through the sky as quickly as she could, smashed a Level 3 toward the ground, and then looked down after it with a smirk. In doing so, she happened to throw a glance at Embracing Garden. Needless to say, her eyes became the size of saucers.

"What on Earth…is Allen waking up? Krory!" she called.

The said vampiric man paused from his feeding and destroying as he turned his gaze to the young woman.

"We're going to help Reever and the others get in safely! Allen has the other stuff covered!"

"Alrig-…eh?" he asked, looking down to the vines.

By then, the large plant had already started connecting to the platform, the scientists on it having gurneys ready for Lavi and Allen and first aid ready for everyone else. Some of the vines had started to stick to the sides of it, using the spikes to hold on to it. Just as the connection was almost complete enough to begin to run into safety, Nine landed back down onto the vine lift upon Lau Shimin, looking over the situation really quickly. There were no more AKUMA heading in, which was great, yet there were still at least 11 Level 4s and 4 Level 3s. Though the Level 3s probably wouldn't be as much trouble as they used to, Level 4s were still quite the menace, and she could've sworn that she had seen a Level 5 sneaking around in the midst of a few of the hoards.

Suddenly, she heard the slight sound of someone trying to clear their nose and the small gasp from a surprised man. Behind her in Tiedoll's arms, Allen had begun to move more, her eyes adjusting to the light that she hadn't seen too much of over the past few days. Marie, who had his strings attached to two of the Level 3s, turned to some extent in her general direction, recognizing her heart beat as it quickened, notifying him that she had awakened, a smile spreading on his face. Kanda slashed at one of the remaining two, stabbing it as he noticed her head move. He turned away to hide the smirk that was turning up the corners of his lips. Lavi grinned despite his pain, as Reever, Iglesias, and Amela ran to get to the front of Embracing Garden, becoming aware of the young woman's awakening. Linali almost cried when she looked down to see her moving. Krory smiled with joy, happy that his savior was awake again. She blinked up at the French man a bit before moving her left hand to hide her yawn. She then gave him a sleepy, lopsided smile.

"Good morning, General Tiedoll."

The man had small tears beginning to develop in his eyes as he sniffled. He set her down on the ground, letting her get used to standing again as she stretched, before hugging the girl in a fatherly way. In other words, he was squeezing the life out of her.

"Oh, I'm so happy! I thought we were going to lose another child to this war!" he cried.

She laughed half-heartedly, patting the man on the back the best that she could with her upper arms glued to the sides of her body.

Then, the floor trembled with the connection to the platform. She looked away from him to the scientist, some of which dropped their stuff out of pure shock. She stared at them a bit confused, not noticing that it was much easier to breath than before.

"Umm, General. We need to get moving."

"Oh. Right," he replied, clearing his throat, "Everyone, let's go in!"

The Level 4s above them screeched in anger and began attempting to follow them in. Three of the eleven suddenly found themselves missing an arm. As they cried out, Fou appeared on the edge of the platform, the scythe heads that she used for weapons just lightly dripping with AKUMA blood.

"Oi, you humans better hurry your asses up!" she yelled, putting her "wrists" on her hips.

Said humans began rushing past her, thanking her as they went, Embracing Garden fading off into smoke as the last of them ran off. Reever made a short stop to one of the gurneys, setting Lavi on it carefully as Iglesias and Amela held next to them with their talismans on hold since the scientists already had some up, and once Lavi was settled, they began moving him immediately to the hospital ward. Marie and Krory hurried inside after the group before fatigue would take hold onto their bodies. Even thought the generals had held up well, they too were beginning to feel exhaustion set in as they rushed in to the door way, Allen not too far behind. Well, that was before they heard a scream.

Kanda, who had Mugen buried hilt deep into the heart of a Level 4, and Allen turned to see Linali, her head pressed forcefully to the platform, shoulder length hair spread out. The Level 5 who had been hiding out around the general area had finally taken action, holding her left leg in one hand, her head in the other. She was struggling as much as she could, yet just couldn't budge within its hold. This one had not been exposed to any of Allen's innocence at any point, meaning that the true strength of it was showing through.

"**I have to admit, you exorcists are really resilient. But, I'm afraid, this is the end of the line for you."**

Kanda's eyes widened at how it talked. It seemed that all of the Level 5s had different personalities as well as the Level 2s and 3s, even though at Level 4, they seemed to blend together again. Or maybe that's because Level 4s were all pricks.

"**You see, you all have not been abiding by my master's script for quite some time. The play that he has had prepared for a while is being disrupted because of you all. In order to equal out the stances, I'll have to take out most of your lives."**

Fou shivered. She had had trouble with dealing with a Level 3 at one point…what would this Level 5 do? It most likely had the potential to destroy her. She glanced up at Kanda. His eyes held a nervousness that she had never seen in them, even though they had not met much. He wasn't powerful enough to handle one; she could tell. But in looking at Allen, she got the exact opposite reaction.

Allen had a slight frown on her face as if she were annoyed, her head tilted to the left with her arms lying beside her lifelessly. She wasn't shivering, twitching, or showing any sign of fear.

"Why are you things so much trouble?" she asked rhetorically, raising her right hand to scratch through her hair before closing her eyes and sighing; she then reopened them and held out her right arm, her palm open, "Fine. If you want me, go ahead and take me."

Kanda's eyes turned and glared at her. Was she really going to take everything upon herself again?! Getting herself killed wasn't going to solve anything! Just as he was about to retort, he felt the air around him chill, several Level 4s surrounding him and Fou, who had been helping him get rid of the remaining AKUMA. He groaned, his pupils almost slitting within his eyes.

Shit.

Linali gasped out in pain as well as shock. Is she really going to do this? She has the Heart of Innocence! If she dies, they are all as good as dead!

The Level 5 smirked, the Level 4s giggling like little children, as he let Linali go.

"**Good choice, girl. You knew that the master was after you, didn't you? How is that?"** it asked, stepping over Linali.

"The Earl and I have been said to have a pretty close train of thought. Besides, he doesn't like me," she replied, stepping closer to it as other humans were left gaping by the door.

Linali looked over to the entrance of the Asian Branch, several scientists and the generals standing there, shock on their faces. The generals were frozen in their spot in the middle of the hallway leading away from the outside. They were tired, but most likely willing to help. What on earth had their eyes so wide, not even moving to assist them?

"**Either way, I'm glad that I get to win without that much of a dispute. Don't you know? It's quite a bit of trouble trying to beat you people. Especially you, from what I've heard the master say about you."**

"What does he call me? Honestly, I'm quite curious."

"**The largest thorn in his side; the splatter of black ink on the script of his play; that one FLY that just refuses to leave the kitchen, infecting everything you touch; the drop of RED WINE on his WHITE table cloth; the GRAY piece of rice that refuses to blend with any of the other grains; that LUMP in his pillow that JUST REFUSES TO SETTLE; that MOSQUITO that made the bite that just keeps ITCHING AND ITCHING AND ITCHING; that TONE on the phone THAT KEEPS GOING ON IN THE SAME MONOTONE TILL HE SHUTS IT UP; THAT BITCH THAT JUST WON'T STOP BARKING, NO MATTER HOW MUCH IT GETS HURT, BATTERED, OR BRUISED."**

By then, the two were right in front of each other, it towering over Allen's relatively short body. Its talons were extended at the sides of her neck, ready to kill her. Her eyes had widened greatly, staring at the demon-like creature. Then, she made an expression that shocked Kanda, Linali, Fou, the Level 4s, and the Level 5 itself.

Her smile had extended to unreasonable proportions, the area in between her eyes seeming to darken as she grinned up at it. She moved her face closer to it, her red left eye and green right eye narrowing to make a face akin to the Noah. Had her face been tar black, she could've easily been mistaken as one. She had moved her face so close to the AKUMA's, her nose at the place where the "demon's" would've been pressed together, suddenly causing green lines to start cracking through its face. She opened her mouth, an eerie laugh from her suddenly dual voice escaping her lips, her tone alight in amusement.

"_I'm flattered that he considers me so highly._"

Everyone outside was startled when she suddenly broke up into mist immediately engulfing its body. Just as the Level 4s saw this and were going to proceed in killing the two they had trapped, they heard a cracking noise under them. They could only get out a gasp as green spikes suddenly popped up from the ground, piercing through their legs or backsides before bursting through their skulls, skewering them like several shish-kabobs. They immediately went limp, beginning to bleed, their bodies making popping sounds as they twitched, getting ready to explode.

Kanda caught on to the noise, grasping Fou's elbow to drag her away from the ticking time-bombs as she stared at them in awe, completely flabbergasted. He tugged her away just in time as they burst, their blood and guts spilling out onto their backs and onto the ground and the earth below the platform. Fou nodded at him, noticing him nod back, before the two looked forward at the Level 5, who had begun to screech in pain, writhing but somehow unable to move.

Linali sat up in astonishment, her eyes completely trained on the beast as it writhed and cried out in agony, its feet strapped to the platform by vinelike, glowing green extensions that extended from where "Allen" had been standing, thorns poking painfully into its ankles as they grew to its calves. In its pain of being eaten at tiny cell by cell, it managed to smirk.

"**Y-YOU…BITCH…IT W-WAS ALL-AGGHGH…A SCAM!"**

Allen finally revealed herself, walking around the corner of the main door, smiling a much more humanlike smile of victory.

"Of course. Did you really think that me, being 'the BIGGEST thorn' in the Earl's side, would bend to your will like my decoy did? You may speak in a more intelligent way than most, but you certainly aren't any wiser."

'**Ah…so that's why those others didn't come and help. She had been standing there...during the whole fucking situation…'**

It laughed wryly.

'**She's a BIG ASS THORN indeed…'**

Suddenly, it felt a sensation that it hadn't before. It felt warm despite its pain. That warm, tingly feeling that extended from the outer layer of his skin began to sift through it to its very core. It chuckled, not really minding the feeling as it ebbed out the sensation of pain.

"**What's this…feeling…It's all warm now…heh…I feel better than I have in a while…"**

"Yeah…I decided to kill you slowly, so that you could feel this better. It may seem cruel…"

"**No…no…it isn't cruel at all…I'm feeling…floaty. It's not bad at all."**

Its body by then had finally completely dissipated, leaving everyone get a glimpse of what was left of the poor soul inside of it. The soul wasn't nearly as bad looking as it was when it was still inside of the AKUMA body, but it still looked pretty darn bad. It had holes here and there, though they were beginning to fill in, in its floating form of black and other mixes of dark, gloomy colors. Its face was nothing more than two white holes for eyes and an upturned white crescent.

"Ahh…yeah…I'm going to enjoy this for a long time…Guess this is how it feels in the afterlife,**" **it looked to her and smiled once more, **"**Thanks. Thanks a lot.**"**

Allen smiled at him warmly, her right eye no longer green, but her left eye still red.

"Of course."

The soul finally turned into a blue ball of light before shooting up to the sky, heading to its heavenly home.

Nobody moved for a while. That soul…had been so fed off of. The joy in its voice as if felt itself getting cleansed had been…heartwarming. The scientists who watched had the spectacle suddenly felt better about their jobs. Tiedoll had, not that anyone else had noticed, taken out a small sketchbook, and had drawn the scene with amazing accuracy, tears sitting at the corners of his eyes as the fatigue nearly left his body just from watching that alone. Nine had a warm smile upon her face, Lau Shimin snuggling against her neck as it felt relaxed from watching. Kanda had been flabbergasted, having not seen a soul before in his life. Frankly, it looked like shit. But as he had watched it slowly heal from Allen's innocence…he realized that that happened to the souls inside of the AKUMA he sliced as well. And while he never saw or heard it, souls had been thanking him. He tried his best to refuse the smirk coming onto his face. Fou and Linali just couldn't tear their eyes away from the girl. She had been so happy watching it fade off.

'If she ever hears about Third Exorcists…' Fou thought, her gaze dropping to the floor.

"A…Allen…" Linali whispered.

Allen's smile dropped as she ran to the girl's side immediately. She then kneeled on the ground beside her friend, her hands on her shoulders.

"Are you okay, Linali?" she asked, shaking her lightly, trying to get the blank look out of her eyes as she looked down.

She was about to ask her if she was okay once more when she was suddenly held in a tight embrace.

Linali had her arms wrapped tightly around her neck, holding the younger girl as close as she could. She had been so scared. She could've died…and its face…she had never seen one so up close before. Not as up close as Allen had when she first bet one. But now that she had, she wanted to erase any memory that she had of feeling its clammy hands on her head and leg. She at first wanted to scrub herself clean, even if it meant rubbing her skin raw, yet, somehow, hugging Allen seemed to reassure her enough than doing something so drastic. She began to cry, hiccupping as she sobbed.

Allen seemed to understand her plight. The Level 5…it is a frightening thing, especially if you can see its soul. Yet, she knew that though Linali couldn't, she knew she felt the fear of death come upon her as it touched her, ready to snap her into pieces at any time. She had stopped being so worried and began to hug her closely, rubbing her back in a calming gesture. Her eyes closed, letting their innocences resonate. Allen's hand, as it gave off a soothing heat as she rubbed her back, began glowing as Linali's anklets started to do the same.

Kanda couldn't help but stare. The morning sun had finally decided to brighten itself for the occasion, engulfing the two girls in warmth. While he didn't pay much attention to Linali, though he did feel concern for her, he found himself trained on Allen. The way that she held her closely, not letting her feel left alone, the way her black eyelashes stood out on her cheeks, the way the sun hit her just right…

He looked away to avoid anything going to his groin.

Linali's tears had slowly ebbed away, sniffling as she had calmed down. She looked up to her savior as Allen reopened her eyes, their innocence resonance fading away. Linali rubbed her eyes, beginning to laugh wryly.

"Look at me…I'm acting like a baby…"

"It's okay. You were scared, right? There's no harm in looking for comfort," she replied warmly.

'You should say that to yourself,' everyone watching who knew her situation thought together.

Suddenly, there was a lionlike roar that echoed from their general area as Allen suddenly started sweating and doubled over. Linali's eyes had widened like saucers as she stared at the girl. Kanda had whipped out Mugen, eyes open in shock, Fou not too much better, her "hands" having turned into scythe heads. Allen looked up from the ground to the shocked people around her, laughing lowly.

"I'm sorry…but…I'M FREAKIN HUNGRY."

Everyone burst out laughing.

Allen had even failed to notice that her shirt was open.

* * *

Tyki trudged in circles through the room. He was smoking the very last cigarette in his packet, looking like a train as he made his continuous beeline to nowhere. Road would've laughed at him if she hadn't been in such deep thought.

"So, let me get this straight…this…'Neah'…is my mum?" she asked.

Lero, whose hilt was being held in Road's left hand, shook his head the best he could.

"And…I'm Tyki's older sister?"

"Th-…the first born…actually…Neah…had been your mother before Earl-sama killed her…He is…your father. All of the Noah family…really is family."

Tyki had finally stopped pacing as the two stared straight at the umbrella golem…and laughed.

Tyki had to put his hand on his knees to keep from toppling over in laughter, being careful to not mush his cigarette against his leg. Road was kicking her legs, her right arm draped over her stomach to keep herself relatively in place. The taller male rubbed his right hand under his eye before looking up at the golem.

"Whoa…haha…you've got quite a strange sense humor there! That cheered me up," he commented as he calmed down, brushing invisible dust off of himself.

"Wait till I tell Jasdebi this one! Oh, they'll die!" the shorter female cheered, rolling on the couch.

Lero lost his temper a bit.

He escaped from Road's grasp and floated in front of the two. His face darkened as he was Road continue to mock him, Tyki deciding do disregard any of the important information he had given them. How dare they! How dare they mock their mother's sacrifice for them!

"SHE DIED FOR YOU INSATABLE FOOLS! SHE DIED PROTECTING YOU, AND THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY HER, MOCKING HER LEGACY?! YOU UNGRATEFUL BEASTS! LOOK AT HOW ADAM HAS RAISED YOU ONCE-WISE IDIOTS! YOU'RE ALL NOTHING BUT RUFFIANS! OH, I WOULD HATE DO FACE HER NOW, KNOWING WHAT YOU HAVE BECOME!"

The two, for once were silent. Lero had finally gotten serious with them…and who was Adam? Road put a hand to her head. Tyki stared at the golem blankly, not used to him actually yelling seriously. He gave a slight start when the umbrella floated close to his face, glaring at him for all he was worth.

"If it helps you remember…even the **slightest**…I want you to take a good, **hard** stare at that burning side of your cigarette to remember the flames that you stared at as you watched your one and only mother **bleed to death**."

The angry golem left the room, steam basically coming from his mouth.

Tyki looked after him, shock evident in his expression. Why would he say such a thing? It seemed as if he really was being completely serious. His hand then absently sent him the signal that his cigarette had spilled hot ash onto it. He quickly moved the tar stick to his other hand, shaking his right one in slight pain.

"Ach…that hurt a bit. Oi, Road. Do you know what he's talkin-…Road?"

Road was holding her head in both hands. She was frowning as she reached her hand out to a cup nearby on the small table on the side of her couch. Tyki picked up the water pitcher that they had absently sitting on the main desk facing the outside and poured water into the girl's cup. Road drank it down as if her insides had started burning.

"Hey, you okay?" he asked, confused.

She huffed, taking the glass away from her lips and applied it to her head.

"I…don't know. The name Adam…for some reason it makes my head throb. It feels like it's on fire," she muttered in reply.

She stood to her feet, suddenly not feeling so well. Thoughts had begun to run through her mind that she didn't think about before. Her eyes trained on the floor as she walked to the door of the lonely room.

"I think I'll go to bed early today. I'm not feeling so well. Goodnight, Tyki. Let's play again tomorrow."

She had unintentionally said it monotonously. Without letting him get any words in, she left the room. He was left standing there, before he sighted and took a whiff from the last bit of cigarette he had left. How had such a bland day taken such a turn for the worst?

* * *

Road staggered slightly through the hallway to her room. Why was she feeling so off all of a sudden? Was it just that the name Adam threw her off? She was pretty sure that she had heard the name before as one of the students in the school that she currently didn't really need to go to had, yet it still felt foreign on her tongue. Adam. What was so wrong about Adam? She walked into her bedroom completely confused as she lit her floating candles with her presence. She ignored all of the dolls that she had sitting here and there, be them the remains of real people or just wooden. Plopping onto her plushy bed, she sighed out of irritation and grasped a pillow to put over her face.

She had to think somehow.

Why was her brain so fuddled and muddled about a name? Adam... But then there was Neah. Neah made her even more confused than Adam, yet her name didn't hurt her head as much. Neah was just a name, just like Adam was. What difference did these people make? Who was Neah? Dead. Dead as a doornail. Pushing up daisies…or not, from what Milleni said, declaring war against her in front of everyone and whatnot. So…living dead? She was a zombie? Neah the zombie…her mother? Yeah, Lero had mentioned that Neah was her mother.

_**He didn't give you life, you murderer.**_

Her eyes snapped open as she pulled the pillow from over her face. It was that voice again. The voice from the dream she had all those days ago. He didn't give her life…who was it referring to?

_The Millennium Earl is still alive and strong!_

Oh, that's what she had said... Milleni hadn't given her life? Then who did?

_How did I kill her?!_

_**YOU FORGOT HER! YOU FORGOT HER! YOU FORGOT! YOU FORGOT!**_

She forgot Neah. She forgot…'mom'. At least, that's what Lero and that voice had said. Well, if Neah had been her mother, it figures that she would've gotten her life from her. But…she felt like she was forgetting something very important…

Oh yeah. Neah was the Fourteenth. Yet, the Earl was constantly talking about how she had betrayed them. How exactly was Neah a traitor? Well, of course. She had…what had she done?…WHAT had she done…

He never said what she did to betray the Noah family.

She sat up in her bed, her thoughts still muddled, but she understood one thing. Clutching the sides of her pillow, she tore it into halves, the fluff and feathers falling from it in clumps. Her glare could've melted the wall she stared at. Huffing, she stood from her bed with an odd look upon her face.

"Milleni's hiding too much."


	13. Exorcist Recovery

**12/28/12: I didn't rewrite this one. Mostly just did some revisions:**

***sobs* Oh gosh, this has taken waaaaaaay too long. Writer's Block had hit me like a ten thousand pound train and caused a wreck that took, like, almost 9 MONTHS to fix.  
It wasn't until I discoverd the soundtrack of Neon Genesis Evangelion that my writer's block disappeared. I also found some of the soundtracks from Mirai Nikki and Sankarea to be a bit helpful. Even so...this chappie is SHORT. And when I say short, I mean this chapter only mananged to fill 7 pages in Microsoft Word, and the seventh page isn't even full.  
I would've kept typing for the 13th chapter, but I decided to go ahead and start bleeding into the 14th chapter so that I could go ahead and get that one started up. I also wanted to go ahead and get the 13th one up already, since it took so long. Right now, I'm about 430 words into the 14th. (pun not intended)  
I hope that I never take this long on a chapter ever again... Thank you for all of your reviews and the few people that PM'ed me with concern and stuffs. You all are beautiful, beautiful people~**

**It seems that this time, thirteen really was an unlucky number.**

**-JD**

**DISCLAIMER: I hardly put these anymore, but just so you know, -Man is not mine.**

* * *

The Asian Branch of the Black Order was teeming with new energy and life. The medical ward was on top alarm, caring for the newly arrived and exhausted exorcists and finders. Everyone's attention was on the warriors of God.

Especially on Allen.

Sure, they had seen the white-haired teen chow down before…but never like that. Allen had been, quite frankly, starving. Her stomach had been empty for several days and now that food was in her reach, she was taking complete advantage of it. She had a table all to herself, food piled not only on trays on the table, but some were stacked beside her. There was a cart full of empty trays behind her that she dumped the newly food-deprived platters into.

Chicken dumplings, tri-tip steaks, green bean casserole, hamburgers, pasta, sushi, lo mein noodles, vegetable curry, biryani, tandoori chicken, croissants…the whole world of food was on her plates, and she devoured it like it was a simple snack.

Many of the more sensible scientists watching, mainly the women, cringed at the different combinations of foods that they knew were going to mix into her stomach. Others winced at it as it went into her mouth, but knew that her black hole of a stomach would digest it all perfectly as it always had.

Overall, nobody really minded that she ate as much as most of the scientists already knew the nature of Allen's stomach. A select few of the men specifically didn't mind because they were too shocked by looking at her chest.

Allen was so focused on fulfilling her appetite that she didn't remember that her shirt had opened during the fight. She didn't notice that she was reaching over her chest to grab more food or that the wraps that remained there left little to the imagination. Sure, they covered her whole chest, but medical wraps were never meant to suffice as a bra.

This happened to be one of the first things that Linali and Kanda noticed upon finding her table, though it wasn't a struggle to do so.

The Chinese girl had run into the cafeteria, mouth open in a dainty smile, ready to thank Allen for saving her and wanting to ask her questions about her innocence. Kanda had come following her simply because he'd been given a clean bill of health due to Allen's innocence and had nothing better to do, also contemplating whether he'd get something to eat or not. Both of their processes stopped once they saw the whitette.

The girl paused mid-chew of a chicken leg to smile, mouth closed, and wave at the two of them. She then hurriedly chewed the rest of the meat that was in her mouth before speaking to them.

"Ah! Linali-chan! Kanda! You guys have got to try this! They have so many different foods here, even better than the last time I was here!" she called over to them, a grin on her face.

She was waving her right hand in the air, cheeks turned pink from health coming back to her body, food crumbs dotted around her mouth. The back of the girl's hair had gotten a bit longer, so it curled around her neck and slightly over her shoulders. The white shirt that she still had on was unbuttoned and waved around her body, her shirt sleeve rolled up as to not dirty it with the food surrounding her.

Kanda couldn't help but pay especially close attention to how her teeth shined white despite all of the food going into it, or how her lips were a splendid shade of a very light apricot. They looked really smooth, too…

He looked away from her hurriedly.

"Mou! Allen!" the Chinese girl fussed as she stomped over to the girl, heels clicking against the floor.

She allowed the younger teen to place her food back onto her plate before roughly grasping the sides of the loosened white shirt and crossing it over her chest.

"Really! You've got to be more conservative!" she reprimanded heartedly, a blush crossing her face.

She flinched at how confused Allen looked.

The whitette tilted her head to the side, puzzled as to what the girl meant. She then opened her mouth to say something when she finally noticed exactly how cold her chest was.

She blinked, then again. It was usually the hottest part of her body, but at the moment, it felt unnaturally cold. With all the clothes she would have piled up on her chest to keep it concealed, she shouldn't even feel air in that spot. Not to mention, she could also breathe a lot easier than usual. A perplexed look on her face, she looked down.

Ah.

Where was her vest?

The look on her face was quite priceless, eyes wide open with her mouth gaped in a small, triangle-like shape, looking down at her chest as if it had just suddenly popped up that way. Kanda fought a snicker away from his lips and throat. Of course she just noticed.

Linali could see the questions passing through the girl's face like a wildfire, knowing that they were showing up faster than anyone could answer them. To prevent her from just plain yelling out something that she may regret in the future, she grasped the young woman's right hand, getting her out of her seat, and rushed her out of the cafeteria, ignoring her cries to return to her food.

"W-wait a second, Linali! I wasn't done eating yet! Linali!" she cried, stumbling after her older 'sister'.

Those left in the cafeteria were left silent, watching as the young women retreated from the scene. Kanda stood there like a log as well, just blinking, but he shook it off. Shrugging, he walked over to the ordering area, ready to get some much needed soba.

* * *

"Really, Allen! When you're around other people like that, you have to always make sure that you're well covered!" the Chinese girl reprimanded, still holding onto said girl's hand, taking her to the women's restroom.

"Ah, well, I didn't notice my vest was gone. It'd always been there before…" Allen trailed off.

Linali paused in her walking to look back to the girl and contemplate what she just said.

'Always been there before…'

"Allen? How long have you been…binding your chest?" she asked, shoulder length hair waving lightly as she moved closer to Allen.

The teen looked at her straight in the eyes for a few seconds before looking up and contemplating the question, her left pointer finger on her chin, "Hmmm…I'll be honest…I don't quite remember. I'd always done it."

"Why?" the older of the two asked, curiosity settling in.

Allen's eyes became downcast, "Well, living at a circus isn't the greatest place to be. There'd be drunkards who'd drift around, looking for trouble. More specifically, a lay."

She suddenly covered her mouth with her left hand, thinking that she'd said too much. She looked anywhere but at Linali's face, not really wanting to see her expression.

'No! I'm getting somewhere here!' the older thought frantically.

"A lay? As in…sex?" she asked, a horrified expression developing slowly.

"Umm…I don't know…should I really be telling you this?"

"Allen," she began, grasping the girl's shoulders, "You're free to talk to me at any time. I'll listen to what you have to say, so please. I'd like to learn more about you, even though we've known each other for a while."

Allen looked straight into her eyes, searching for some sort of joke or lie. When she found none, her shoulders slumped and she averted her gaze to the ground, not wanting the elder one to see the shock on her face. No one, none other than Mana and Neah, and nearly Kanda, had told her something like this.

Sure, plenty of people would ask her if anything was wrong with her, but it just wasn't the same as wanting to actually learn about the person. Others were concerned for her well-being, but there's a difference between that and digging deeper than just the surface problems and finding out her though process and why she did the things she did. But now, thinking about it, maybe this is what the others she knew were trying to do, but they just didn't phrase it in a way she could recognize. They all cared so much for her…

Her hands reached up slowly and held onto Linali's hands, which were on her shoulders holding her lovingly. Linali began to close the distance between the two of them, walking forward unhurriedly.

"Let me listen to your wishes, Allen," she said, an affectionate smile on her face.

Her body jolted seconds after Linali spoke.

'My wishes…'

Her hands suddenly grasped Linali's with a grip not meant to harm, but certainly meant to hold heavily. Ripping the elder's hands off of her, she pushed herself from Linali's grasp, panting heavily as if she ran a race all across the surface of the Earth.

'No…not my wishes…'

Linali's hands were still where they were when she had grasped her shoulders, alarm displayed in her facial features. Linali brought her lightly throbbing hands back toward her own body as she began to slowly approach the younger teen, noticing how her body trembled slightly.

"Allen?"

Allen looked up at her, but she wasn't seeing or hearing Linali, white disrupting her vision.

She saw and heard Mana.

The man was right in front of her, his clown suit off, make-up absent from his face. His smooth black hair waved around the middle of his neck a bit, two strands of hair in front of his forehead as his bangs. He had a thin mustache lining the skin above his top lip ranging from one side of his mouth to the other. His face was gentle yet concerned, kind eyes twinkling as he smiled at her, hoping to comfort her. He began to reach out to her, the fingers attached to a kind, large hand splaying out to show his openness toward her.

"Allen, are you alright?"

Suddenly, he was no longer human.

He was now a black, Dark Matter skeleton, his name written on the forehead of his skull with an upside down star, the white in the background having transformed into a rolling mass of blacks, dark purples, and deep grays. He no longer had hands, now only what would he his wrist. Even so, Mana still reached out for her.

Her hands grasped the sides of her head, eyes widening as tears developed in the corners of them, backing away out of fear.

"**You turned me into this, Allen! Why?! I'll curse you!**"

The arm reached forward and seemed to grab her. She felt her back connect with a wall as she opened her mouth to scream.

"**I love you…Allen…Allen. Allen! **Allen! Allen, it's me! Allen!"

Allen blinked. She was no longer surrounded with the mass of darkness, now facing an extremely worried Chinese girl. The hallway came back into view behind the girl, the dark green of the paint and off-white of the pillars making her just a tiny bit nauseous.

Linali's heart felt like her heart was breaking. She had been calling out to Allen after she noticed the fright that came onto the young woman's face. She watched her and she began to tremble and cry. As her hands came up to the sides of her head. As she almost screamed.

"N-no…no…Linali."

"Huh?"

"I can't…" Allen swallowed heavily as she calmed herself down, eyes downcast, "I can't tell you my wishes. I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry."

She then ducked from Linali's grasp, which had been lightened after what she had said, and ran down the hallway, supposedly searching for the way to a much quieter, much more secret place. Linali stood there for a while, paralyzed. Finally letting her arms drop down to her sides, she placed her forehead on the wall, her just-past-shoulder length hair creating a curtain around her head, shading her tears from sight.

With that, the conversation was over.

* * *

Lavi lay in his hospital bed in his dim medical room, the only light being from the large window that let light from the hallway into his room and the little lights on the machines attached to him, monitoring.

His visible eye was glazed over with tears he refused to let leave it. The pain that was shifting through him from his wrists was unbearable. No matter what the scientists did to try and sate him and sooth his agony, nothing worked. The crystals had grown to stick straight out of his wrists, pointing to the sky. Even though he knew that it wasn't as high as he thought it was, it seemed as if red sky scrapers were growing out of his wrists. It hurt so much. He looked to the left, noticing the scientists that were outside of his room. Distantly, over the noise of the beeping and whirring of the machines in the room with him, he could hear them speaking with each other.

"What else can we do? We've made sure that he is as comfortable as we can get him, fed him, and gave him pain killers. It's just not working," the tallest of the three said.

"I've never seen a crystal-type before. I heard that Linali has one. Was it as painful with her as it is with him?" the shortest of the group asked.

"I had already read over the date from the Main Branch about Linali's innocence. She had bled quite a bit and was in pain, but not nearly for as long as Lavi has been," the middle-sized one replied.

"I can't help but wonder what's causing his innocence to develop so slowly."

"I wonder as well. But, if I'm correct, Lavi is a Bookman. Developing a crystal-type innocence would mean he'd have to dedicate himself to the Order, wouldn't it?"

"I believe so. For all we know, it could be his mind holding him back."

Lavi stopped listening once the middle one said what he had. His own mind holding him back…that probably was true.

He'd given up everything, even his own name, to follow Bookman and his ways. He had 49 past selves that he had developed to do his job as he had needed to. He was so used to moving around. He was so used to watching the world move along in front of him, he wasn't sure if he knew how to move in the cycle of life with it. He wasn't supposed to get too close to people as to create sturdy connections with them.

On the other hand, Lavi held too much of a connection to the Black Order, more specifically, their members.

Lavi had always held a friendship with Yu, even if the Japanese male had the habit of denying it. He didn't always mind when Mugen would come flashing at him threateningly. At least the guy didn't ignore him. He knew that if Yu really didn't like him, he would've ignored him, like the male usually did with the finders. If Yu recognized that you were there, he held some form of 'like' for you, be it as small as a fruit fly or as big as a flax seed. Lavi chuckled at his similes.

He also held a friendship with Linali. Of course, that's what the Order thought it only was. He would talk about other women that he saw only because he didn't want others to notice how romantically he felt about her. Komui would kill him if he displayed his love for the Chinese girl. She also returned his feelings, which reassured him greatly; he noticed the subtle things she would do, like the small winks and smiles when no one was paying attention. Once again, Komui would kill him.

And then came Allen…she was like a sister to him. With his enhanced memory, he saw flashes of the times he saw Allen smile. When 'he' was eating, when 'he' was having fun with their 'family', when 'he' was talking to him, they all flashed through him. He loved her like he was actual siblings with her. He wished nothing but the best for her and hoped that her life would improve. He would be by her side, even if the world turned against her. Yu, Linali…they all would.

Just as he was about to go into thought about how bad her life had seemed to be before, he heard his door creak open slowly, a large ray of light entering his dimmed room.

Speak of the devil.

There stood Allen, nervous eyes peeking in and looking around at the different machines that hummed and beeped inside of the room. Once her eyes caught onto his limp form, a small smile began to grow, until she noticed the bloody crystals that grew from his wrists. Being as cautious as she could, she tip-toed her way in, turning around to close the door silently behind her.

"You don't have to be as silent as you're being, you know…" his voice rasped, hoarse from pain.

He chuckled a little when she jumped, the hair on the back of her head bristling and her shoulders stiffening. She turned around to look at him, staring at him a bit before grinning cheerily, her embarrassment clear on her face. She found a fairly plush chair to sit in that was near the window before grabbing it and taking it to Lavi's bedside. She then sat in it, placing her arms on the very edge of his bed. Adjusting her arms to where she was comfortable, she settled down and looked at his face, smiling.

"Good morning, Lavi," she said quietly, still mindful of the pain he was in.

"G'mornin', Al-chan," he replied, managing a smile in return.

"I would ask how you're feeling, but…" she trailed off, glancing at his wrists.

"Yeah, that'd be a bit redundant."

"That's what I thought."

Then there was silence for a few minutes. Allen remained at his bedside while he rested, both thinking about the wellbeing of the other.

"Allen, you look a lot better."

"Thank you. The cafeteria food is always good," she replied, grinning.

"Ha ha, that's Al-chan for ya."

"Mmhmm."

"So, I'm guessing everyone knows now."

"Knows what?" she asked, confused.

Lavi laughed a bit at her expression, "That you're a girl, silly."

"Oh…oh…yeah. I guess they do," she replied, remembering how she'd gotten dragged from the cafeteria by Linali.

She then also remembered the somewhat painful conversation the two had. Her head bowed, feeling rather disheartened. She could've sworn that the Chinese girl had started crying or something after she left her. She knew Linali never meant any harm…

But Mana hadn't either.

"Al-chan?"

Allen started a bit, Lavi's voice bringing her back to reality. She stared at his face, a tired expression plastered on it, and gave him a mediocre smile in return.

"Yeah, sorry. I blanked out a bit there."

"It's alright…but are you sure you're okay?" he asked, worry in his raspy voice.

The weight of the scratchiness in his voice made her cringe, imagining the pain he must be in.

"I don't think we should be focusing so much on me right now. Aren't you the one in pain here?"

"Yeah…I guess. But I don't want you to hurt either."

"I have a clean bill of health after I ate, you know," she stated in a matter of fact.

"Hurting doesn't only happen on the outside…you know that full and well," he replied, face somber.

"…You should really stop getting bedridden. It gives you time to think and makes you say wise stuff," she growled, no actual venom in her words.

She managed to get a chuckle out of him again.

"Yeah, stay out of bed so I don't get too smart. Never heard that one before, Al-chan," he joked, his smile widening as his visible eye closed in mirth.

They stayed quiet for a little while after that, enjoying each other's company. Then, as Allen had said, being bedridden gave him time to think. Thus, he had an idea.

"Hey, Allen?"

"Yes?" she asked, startled a bit that he called her without a nickname.

"What's wrong…what's going on with my innocence? Why is it taking so long? Why is it…" he trailed off, turning his face away from her. The last question didn't have to be said.

'Why is it so painful,' Allen thought, completing his question in her head, her expression solemn.

She shook her head and put a smile on her face, knowing that he didn't see it as he was facing away. It was more of a comfort to herself then to Lavi. She began to look off to the side, fidgeting nervously.

"I think I can figure that out for you. I haven't tried it before, but allow me…"

She saw him look up at the ceiling, the thought rolling through his head. He then closed his eyes. He nodded, submitting himself to his supposed fate.

Allen sat up straight in her chair and closed her eyes. She glanced at Lavi's glistening crystals before she breathed in. Her first breath was heavy, and then she began to breathe as if she were meditating.

The innocence within Allen's hand began pulsating a bit more, causing resonance with the crystals. As Allen's hand glowed brighter, her hair began to float up a little as well. If her eyes were open, they would be glowing green.

Lavi kept his eyes closed, but he could feel his innocence pulsing. It wasn't painful, and in fact, it seemed that the resonance soothed his agony, even if just a bit. It was like water was washed over his skin, starting from his wrists. He sighed, the pain almost completely ebbing away.

"Your innocence…is waiting," she whispered

Lavi's eye reopened at that, interrupting his thought process.

"What?" he asked, moving his head to look at the whitette beside him.

She was looking off to the other side of the hospital room, both eyes glowing bright green, her hair floating a bit, "Your innocence is waiting on you for something. I myself am not sure what it is, but your innocence is waiting on you to make a choice."

The instant she said that it was waiting on a choice, Lavi knew what it was. The innocence wouldn't finish evolving until he chose which side he would be on. He sighed, knowing full and well that it had to be soon. He looked down to his own innocence, the red crystals glowing a bit. Then he watched as the Heart's eyes faded out from their previous glow, white sclera, silver irides, and black pupils coming back into place.

Suddenly, the water-like feeling began to back away, pain coming back into place. He almost wanted to tell the whitette to keep resonating with him until all was over, but he knew that saying something like that would be selfish. He groaned a little, feeling the pain from before settle in even more than before.

"Lavi? Are you okay?" she asked worriedly.

Lavi's eyes scrunched up as he groaned and muttered under his breath. After a second, he reopened his eyes, irides trembling a little from the shock of discomfort that ran through his nerves.

"Maybe," he murmured.

Allen's expression of worry didn't change. She bowed her head a little as she sighed before standing. Bending over the side of the bed, she placed her hands on the edge of it as she moved some of his bangs out of his face as he couldn't do it himself. Then, her pointer finger of her right hand poked his head lightly.

"Please hurry up and figure yourself out," she whispered to him, concern and care in the tone of her voice, "I hate seeing you like this, you know."

Standing up straight, she moved the chair from its spot by the bed to the wall near the large windows that had been behind her. She gave one last smile to the bedridden redhead before she left as silently as she came.

The teen's eye was still wide open from what Allen had said. He moved his gaze from the door to stare up at the ceiling. The white paint stared back at him, glowing eerily from the light outside. The paint seemed to question him as well.

In his head, he imagined that he were at the intersection of a "Y" pathway. Everything was dark except for the roads themselves, the paths a dark grey. Along the two different paths, there stood a form of himself.

One of the forms appeared as his child self. The child had a whole line of others behind him, the bodies slowly growing taller as they got older. His younger self had an expression of expectancy on its face, darkened eyes narrowed and lips pursed. The child was his duty.

The other form was him as he appeared before his wrist injury, only it had a few changes to it. The skin of its face was cracked akin to that of a cracked plate. Even so, its visible eye was warm, a small smile present on its face. This one held its hand out to him, beckoning him closer.

What side?

Who do you choose?

Do you choose who you've always been?

Or do you choose who, in your heart, you want to be?


	14. Elderly, Grandfather Clock

**12/28: Once again, there's just some minor revisions here. Previous AN (BTW, broke that promise. Sorry):**

**Sup, my beautiful followers? It's been a while since I've updated any of my stories, but just as I promised, I will try to update at least one of my stories once a month. In other, more clear words, I will try my best to post a chapter to one of my four stories a month...like, one chapter a month or something. I know, I know. Sucks, right? But I kinda have school and all and I have those classes that really know how to pile up on the work, so I can't type as much as I wish.  
If this chapter seems rushed, I am very sorry. I'll probably edit it when I can. If you see any errors in this chapter, don't be afraid to tell me! I'll correct it as soon as I can! Also, CONSTRUCTIVE criticism is acceptable. I'd like to be able to write the best that I can.  
The poem in this chapter was written by Pesha Leah Azoulay, who died in an absolutely tragic car crash on January 7, 2010...she was only 23 years old.  
When I saw this poem, I thought that it fit Allen very well for reasons that I hope you guys pick up on, and I kinda wanted to give her a little tribute, even though it's nowhere really near January or anything.  
Thank you for reading this chapter! Hopefully I can update this and other stories in the future!**

**-JD**

* * *

It was dinner time per usual. Skinn exacted the normal "discipline" of an AKUMA due to his food not being sweet, and Jasdebi played around and continued to bother Tyki, who had to be on his fifth cigarette of the nighttime dine in. Lulubell had decided to skip dinner in favor of a nap, but this was usual and her food was already saved for her later use. The Earl was grinning at the head of the table, smiling over his assistants and laughing occasionally at their antics.

Road was the only one not normal.

No one noticed it, of course. She was looking down at her homework, a confused frown on her face, per usual. She seemed to have reached a complicated problem on her homework, but she had been forced into actually doing it herself by Lero, something she was thankful for, for once. It meant that she had a reason to frown, considering that she was thinking, even if she wasn't thinking of what "x" was.

The truth was, Road had begun an inspection of the Millennium Earl after the voice in the back of her head beckoned her to. The girl kept up an almost perfect façade to keep the Earl disillusioned, and so far it worked. In fact, it worked so well that it was only Lero that asked her one day about her lack of committing her usual habits, though she never answered him, giving him a smile instead. He never confronted her about it again. Tyki would also give her the occasional sideways glance, but he was never the type to automatically ask the question. Rather, he would watch from the sidelines and investigate, and from the gaze she felt to her right, she knew she was being watched by her…younger brother again.

She'd adopted some of the things Lero had told her, especially the part where she's the oldest. It made her feel fairly nice, so there was no reason in throwing away everything Lero had said during his rant. Of course, there were still quite a few things that confused her about what he'd said, and she would occasionally juggle the thoughts in her mind, trying to see if some of those things would apply.

So far, not much seemed correct, but she'd only been investigating for about a week. Even if she hadn't noticed anything very significant, she had taken note of one specific thing.

Fake.

Their lives, their personalities, what they did. It all seemed so…fake, so reminiscent. Like everything was an illusion. It was like every fiber of their being had been readjusted or something.

Never before in her life had she ever felt so off kilter.

"Road~! Road~! You've been quite silent, dear girl! Is your homework too hard?" the obese…thing asked her, voice groveling with that strange tone he had always had.

She put on her mask quickly, putting on an expression of irritation and a bit of laziness before glaring up at her 'caretaker'.

"Milleni, this is so hard! I don't like math at all! Plus, it's so boring!" she complained, finishing off her statement with a simple lean back into her chair and a bit of leg kicking out of frustration.

The Earl chuckled, "Dear girl, you've got to learn! You know Sheryl and I agreed that you'd have the greatest quality education that Europe could provide~! Besides, working from the inside of a school can't be all that bad! Ah, let me see this then~!"

With a perfect pout on her lips and a bit of moisture to her eyes to make them glisten, she handed him the papers, "Well, I don't like hanging around so many brats. None of them but a select few would make good dolls for me to play with…" then she clasped her hands together, her eyes sparkling unconsciously out of adoration and love, " and I know that Allen would make the best doll of all~!"

She heard a sigh come from Tyki while Jasdebi began complaining relentlessly about Allen's master, Cross, saying that everything was that man's fault and the whitette should've paid off the debts, which they still hadn't gotten around to doing completely. Skinn remained quiet, having been placated with a lollipop.

The laugh that the Earl gave off this time had a darker tone to it, **"You'll have him soon enough, Road. When you do, you'll be allowed to play with him all you want~!"**

It still freaked the others out when his tone would change so suddenly, something that had become a common occurrence ever since the unspeakable "Neah" incident. After it had happened, no one bothered to bring it back up. Not a single Noah wished to be on the opposite end of his wrath.

Tyki shuddered subtly, but other than that had not reaction. Jasdebi froze in their antics, staring like the Earl like a cat did at a dog. Skinn paused in his eating, a flash of fear glazing over his white eyes, before cautiously getting back to it. Road forced herself to have a reaction, eyes widening and shoulders tightening.

Honestly, she'd been expecting the change in his attitude. It happened so often those days that it had become as regular as everything else had. She hid the narrowing of her eyes, deciding to do so only in her mind. Everything was regular and fake. Nothing that happened in front of her eyes was every real anymore.

She stood from her seat, placing a cautious look perfectly on her face, "I think I'll go to bed early tonight. I'm a bit tired…"

The Earl looked up from his hunched position, the answer almost completed, "Hmm, I guess you can. Are you feeling well?"

"No," she replied, closing her eyes, "I think I'll skip tomorrow, too."

There were no arguments as she left her seat, passing behind Tyki's and Jasdebi's chairs to the double doors, opening and closing them silently as the girl departed from the dining room.

And the Millennium Earl thought nothing of it.

* * *

_**Tick Tock, Tick Tock,**_

_**Glancing up at the clock,**_

_**The sound it makes resounds within,**_

_**So many mixed messages lie therein.**_

Road walked down the hallway passing by various rooms with decorated doorposts, eyes narrowed, the usual pep-in-her-step significantly lacking its pizzazz. She had nothing to hum, nothing to sing, nothing to say, simply listening to the thundering of nature. All of her thoughts were still jumbled up in her head, mixing around in a crazy spiral of things she remembers and vacant, untouchable dreams.

_**Tock Tick, Tock Tick,  
Does time move on slow or quick?  
Looking back, time is passing all too fast,  
And yet it crawls by when we'd like it to pass.**_

Too many things all at once, too many recorded memories were flashing in her head. Whenever she would have doubts about the Millennium Earl, the images would play in front of her face like an overused movie: you watched it so many times, you know exactly what's going to happen in the next scene.

_**Tick Tock, Tick Tock**_

_**That sound gives quite a shock,**_

_**When there are so many things we need to do,**_

_**Yet the day's gone by, it's almost through.**_

She paused in less-than-pleasurable jaunt to look at the large grandfather clock at the end of a corridor she'd never bothered to travel down. It had always been sitting there, she remembered. She really never thought much of it. It sat there, creaking away with its sad excused of a ticking sound. Occasionally, she'd become aware of it, and abhor it because if the unusually creaky noise it made, but for today she would not.

_**Tock Tick, Tock Tick,**_

_**To our choices, we must stick,**_

_**It's frustrating to hear that ticking sound,**_

_**Cuz, what's done is done, time can't turn around.**_

She perambulated to the elder, noticing that it was fairly tall; it was as high as her and a half. The design on it was fairly old, the cogs were rusting, and the crevices on it were dusting. It was very atypical. Everything in the mansion the Noah's lived in was well cared for by the AKUMA that upheld the estate, yet there was this abandoned clock…

_**Tick Tock, Tick Tock,  
Time can seem like a rock,  
Solid still, inert, nothing will penetrate,  
When there's something special to anticipate.**_

Why? Why was her heart beating so quickly? It was just a clock. Creaking away…wasting away just as she felt her sanity was. But for some reason, it seemed to bring a strange sort of reminiscence to her. She reached her hand out to touch it, all sound disappearing; no thundering nor strike of lightning.

_**Tock Tick, Tock Tick,**_

_**It can be akin to a candle wick,**_

_**On which the flame consumes the wax,**_

_**Ablaze, but, impossible to get it back.**_

Absent words, make-believe dreams, life meanings and purposes…what were they all? What was she living? Was she living at all? Was she following her fate? Were all of the things she believed to be true…the truth? Was she being lied to? Was she betrayed? Why were her thoughts jumbled and tumbling inside of her brain? What was she trying to forget? Was she really trying to forget it?

Suddenly, a bright light shined into her eyes as she looked up at the clock's face.

_**Tick Tock, Tick Tock,  
If only we could control the clock,  
Special moments are worth repeating,  
Yes, sometimes it seems oh so fleeting.**_

She placed her hand onto the elder.

_**Tock Tick, Tock Tick,  
Change is automatic,  
It's obvious that things don't stay the same,  
That begs the question, is the clock to blame?**_

Fire.

Cinder.

Blood.

Tears.

A tall man, looming over her.

Screaming.

Exploding.

And a single song.

She pulled her hand away, electricity running through the very core of her spirit. Hands splayed out, she fell to the ground, hair covering her face as she faced away from the grandfather clock. She breathed heavily, gasping as she took in as much oxygen she could, sweat dripping down her face. What had that been? What were those pictures, those visions? What did she just do?

If you looked closely, though, at that grandfather clock, you could see a flickering yellow glow within the clock fade as the thunder of the realm just outside of the Noah world rolled in.

_**Tick Tock, Tick Tock,**_

_**Does life revolve around the clock?**_

_**Or does the clock revolve around what we do?**_

_**You decide, because I've got work I must go to!**_

* * *

Allen finished saying her poem as she finished tying her red bow around the neck of her shirt while Timcanpy yawned atop her pillow. She'd been saying her rhyme a lot recently, as it gave her a lot of strength to keep moving forward. She stretched, her muscles fairly relaxed from her fairly comfortable sleep the night before.

Her room was plain, but she didn't mind. There was a bed, a mirror, a tall dresser, mainly for the long dresses of a lady, and a desk with a lamp on it right by the single window in the room. It reminded her greatly of her own bedroom at the Main Black Order, with the exception of the black bed comforter and the strange things that were occasionally stored in there.

Her neck and back cracked lightly as she reached up high before bending backward. Righting herself, she looked into the mirror, taking into account her white, wavy shoulder-length hair, her body shape, and the weirdness of not having on a corset or vest of any kind created to hide her bosom.

Quite frankly, it made breathing a lot easier.

She blinked at herself owlishly, until she reached down, taking off her right glove. She brought the hand up to her face and moved it around in front of her. It was still foreign to her, having a non-deformed hand and all. The only things reminiscent of her previous deformation were the cross still etched into her hand, her innocence glowing with her heartbeat, and the blackened fingernails of the hand. Other than those two attributes, her hand was as smooth as her other one, the skin light and airy rather than rough and nearly wood-like.

A smile reached her peach lips, a subtle blush coming to her face. She really did love her hand as it was now.

_TING_

Startled out of her adoration of having a normal hand, she glanced at the clock which showed her that breakfast was probably nearing its end. Rushing, she ran past her bed, grabbing Timcanpy from her pillow, before shuffling out the door.


	15. Duty or Humanity

**It's been much too long, my lovelies~  
Schoolwork's a bitch. Never liked that asshole.**

**So, I acquired an internet connection again after we left my grandparents' house, so here I am! I'm reeeeeeeally sorry that I hadn't updated in such a long time, but after I spent a few hours rereading some of my past chapters, I realized that they were shitty and started rewriting them. In the process, I found some awesome music I downloaded from Youtube and started listening to that.**

**Dude. I wrote chapters 16 and 17 as well.**

**Sure, the other two are short, but they're that way for a reason~ **

**Nevertheless, here's a new chapter! Reviews are very much appreciated as well as CONSTRUCTIVE criticism!**

**Flames can burn in the fake 2012 apocalypse.**

**Oh, and just as a heads up, I'm not going to put an author's note for the next one cause it's so dramatic. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND that you listen to watch?v=RL6fQaBICxo  
when you read chapter 16. I listened to it while I wrote it, and it fits so perfectly IMO~**

**Remember~  
**"Blah" = Regular Speech;  
**"Blah" = some really dark shit or what not;**  
_"Blah" _= past speech or nice person I guess;  
_'Blah'_ or 'Blah' = thoughts  
"Blah" = telephone~

**I'll try to update some of my other stories soon, but right now, I'm on a roll with this one.  
****I thank everyone who's kept up with me and this story so far. You guys are precious babbus and I love you all~**

**-JD**

**Disclaimer: Not I, sayeth the wolf.**

* * *

When the headaches had started four days ago, Lavi didn't let the thought occupy him. Sure, his friends showed plenty of concern for him. Even Kanda glared at him from the corner of his eye, which was actually quite a bit of care, considering it came from the stone block of a Japanese young man. Nevertheless, Lavi himself reassured them that it was just a result from the pain and that he would be fine.

At that moment though, he would assassinate someone for some stronger painkillers. He'd requested them, but the doctors didn't know the reason as to his headaches and he never received any because they suspected that it could slow his healing process. Even the small amount of light that glowed through the windows showing his room caused the throbbing to worsen. He groaned, almost moving his right arm over his eyes, but flinched when a sharp sting shot through him, a sudden reminder of his current condition, the crystals having grown heavier.

He glared to the other side of the hospital room, staring at the same beeping and humming machines that had accompanied him for the past week. He was very grateful for the help of the Asian Branch, considering that they could've died and all, but he was getting really tired of seeing the same walls every day.

Allen had tried to make the best of it, bringing in stories of her new-found womanhood, which consisted mostly of Linali trying to teach her what it was like being a girl, and Linali herself coming to visit the room to comfort him with secretive kisses and light hugs across his shoulders. Though those things lightened him mood considerably, the throbbing would always come back with a vengeance after the young women would exit the room.

The place was becoming almost an asylum. His own mind already was.

Every time he closed his eyes, he would see his choices right in front of him. He would be standing on a pathway that forked off into two other directions. At the beginning of each path was one of his "selves".

On the left was his duty. The child had become more impatient as time passed on, a full on glare being directed to him, the line of "selves" behind him staring at him in a similar manner. His arms were crossed in an almost childish manner.

"**What's taking you so long? We're waiting. We're all waiting. We are Bookmen, Lavi. All of us remembered our duties, why can't you?"**

"Look, I remember my duty," Lavi replied indignantly.

"**Then why have we been waiting here for you to join us for the past week? This isn't a hard decision, Lavi. Goodness, of all of us, you've got to be the slowest."** The boy shook his head, disappointed.  
**  
**_"You don't need to treat him like that."_

Ah, yes. Then there was the other one. His face was cracking more and more as the week went on, but he never failed to wear a smile when talking to him. At the moment, though, he was frowning at the child, upset at his treatment.

"_He's making a very hard decision right now, and you know it. Choosing to stay on a path that you've followed for years or choosing to take a completely different path is a very hard thing to decide."_

"**It wouldn't be if he knew his place."**

"_He is in his right place. Every human's initial right is the ability to make their own choices. You simply wish to take that away from him."_

"**You're right. He has the ability to make his own choices, like the one he made all those years ago to throw away everything he had and become a Bookman."**

"_Sometimes our minds change."_

"**Indecisiveness leads to either downfall or major complications. You know that, don't you, Lavi? Remember that time when America-"**

"_That was a phase."_

They went back and forth like this all the time, never coming to any sort of solution or neutral agreement.

Just like politics.

"Okay look," he began, rubbing his head with his right hand.

Both of them ceased their arguing to look at him. The cracked one stared at him as if he were the most important person in the world. The other glared as always.

"I've listened to you two fight for…what, a week?"

"_Hmmm, just about, yes."_

"**Six days."**

"Thank you. I needed to know the specific time."

"**Well, if you're going to say how long of time something took, it's best to be specific. You ought to know this from all this time being a Bookman. Or have you really, truly forgotten your duty?"**

"_I'm pretty sure the sass isn't needed."_

"**Duty is duty. If he hadn't wanted to follow through with it, then he shouldn't have joined."**

"_But you must understand that-"_

"**So, that's what you do now," **the younger asked, turning to Lavi, scorn clear on his face, **"You don't follow through with your promises? You back out of something the instant it gets uncomfortable?"**

Lavi frowned, balling his fists, "I do not back out when things get tough."

"**Then what are you doing now? Why is this decision one that is so hard to make?"**

The child began to move closer to him, eyes seeming to glow in growing anger. The line behind him began to crowd instead, their eyes becoming clearer to view.

"**We aren't asking for much. All we are asking is that you continue down the road that we've been traveling for more than ten years. You are the 49****th****. You are a part of every single one of us. Why would you stray from this? Why would you stray from yourself?"**

Lavi backed up as the crowd grew larger, more engulfing, his eyes widening due to the strange tinge of distorted abnormality flowing through him.

"**You know who you are, Lavi. Why are you drifting away from yourself? Think about it. Remember. Why did you become a Bookman?"**

"Be…because…"

"**You became a Bookman because you witnessed how ugly humanity is. You knew how filthy they were, how filthy they are. They went around creating wars, making ludicrous decisions that jeopardized the lives of their people."**

By then, the boy was nearly in his face, grinning.

"**You saw how dirty the human mind was and decided to not be a part of history, but to write it down. You decided to put human history into text in hopes of knowing everything. You wanted to know why people did the things they did. You have access to the world and all of its secrets. Why give that up?"**

"_Because he found something better!"_

The two turned their attention away from each other, glancing over the now surrounding crowed of 48 other "selves" to the one on the other road. He seemed to have been trampled over since he was on the ground, breathing heavily with a hand over his mouth.

Mouth? Wouldn't it be nose if it were a trampling?

Was he having trouble breathing?

His face looked more cracked than ever, the break lines extending over his eyelids, mouth, and even went as far as his ears. The top of his neck showed signs of damage.

"_He found out that humans, no matter who they were, had flaws. Even he has them!" _he yelled, before he fell into a coughing fit.

"**We ignore our flaws for the sake of recording history."**

The cracked Lavi straightened himself out a bit before speaking again, though he cracked more, _"That's exactly the problem! By ignoring your own flaws, you become less human," _he coughed more, interrupting his speech, _"Humans have emotions! Emotions are what make the world go round! Without emotions, you are not human!"_

"**You are right. We are not human, rather, we are not as simple as humans," **the boy replied wryly.

The young boy's neck turned stiffly back to Lavi.

"**We are Bookmen."**

"_**We are Bookmen. We are Bookmen. We are Bookmen. We are Bookmen."**_

Lavi jolted, hearing the past selves begin to chant. Then, they began to twitch and move like dolls, coming closer to light in his dream suddenly caught onto invisible strings that were attached to them.

"Marionettes…" Lavi muttered, backing away from them.

"_That's all you can be simply following duty. Follow what you truly wish, Lavi!" _the cracked one cried out, slowly being blocked out by the chanting.

"_**We are Bookmen. We are Bookmen. We are Bookmen."**_

Lavi looked around himself quickly, noticing them close in on him, some with strings in their hands. To be tied down by duty…

"**49****th****, stop being so insolent. Do what we've always done. Continue the line," **the boy said, its eyes taking on a glassy look.

When it blinked, its eyelid looked exactly like those on a children's doll. A white cloth eye patch appeared out of thin air, strapping itself to the doll's eye. The number "1" showed up in black, bloodlike ink.

Lavi began panicking, sweat rolling down the sides of his face. Looking left and right, he saw as numbers, whether they were black or white, bled onto their eye patches. The marionettes tugged on the invisible strings they held in their hands, intending on using them on him.

"_**We Are Bookmen. We Are Bookmen. We Are Bookmen. We Are Bookmen."**_

They began closing in on him, eyes glassy, mouths twitching, hands reaching. He was speechless, trying to utter words, but they wouldn't leave his mouth. His thought were pushing and shoving for his brain to catch on to them. He was becoming more confused. Why was everything suddenly so hard? Everything was easy as a Bookman. He only needed to show emotion to convince others he was with them, that he was human, just like them. He didn't have to actually feel anything.

It was easy, so easy.

He had to follow his duty. It's what he was meant to do, right? He'd always done it. He gave up everything to become one. Now he was.

Why give that up?

What was the purpose of emotions? They were meaningless after all. All they did was cause one to hurt and cause pain to others. Emotions…how useless they were. The job of a Bookman was easy. Write the history, play the part, continue. Write the history, play the part, continue. Write the history, play the part, continue. Write the history, play the part, continue. The strings they were placing on him was simply part of the job. The tingling in his body as his body parts were turned wooden was nothing. They were required. After all:

He was a bookman.

He was a Bookm**an. **

He was a Bo**okman. **

He w**as a Bookman.**

**He is a-**

He could faintly hear yelling on the other side of the crowd, _"Lavi! Choose who you want to be! Hurry! If this is what you really want, by all means, follow through with it, but if it isn't choose now!"_

He then caught sight of a cracked hand, reaching for him, but not in an aggressive way. It needed him to grasp as well. It was giving him a choice, something it had strived for the entire time. It valued choice. The human ability of choice.

Suddenly, he remembered why he was willing to give it all up. Memories flashed before his eyes:

_The familiar sound of Mugen cutting through air as he jumped out of the way, grinning in a happy-go-lucky manner while Kanda glared at him furiously, his ponytail braided with a bow at the end._

_The food contest Allen had against a burly man in an inn once to get free rooms, cheering the "boy" on as he left the other man in the dust, then being there as the group cheered when Allen held up the room keys victoriously._

_The pranks he'd pulled on numerous scientists, who eventually plotted to send a Komurin after him, only to send the Black Order into disarray and have many a person faint in fear at the sight of a make-upped Kanda._

_The time he placed banana peels in the hallway for Miranda to slip on to be caught in a princely way by Krory and have the two of them blush furiously, only for the plan to happen the other way around, Miranda eventually dropping him after at least half a minute and running away out of embarrassment._

_The way he would listen to Marie play his strings in a simple but beautiful song._

_The train ride he had on the way to Italica when he and Tiedoll saw Kanda and Allen getting snuggly in the sunset, and how Allen reacted to "his" dango being eaten by that pesky golem Timcanpy._

_The small smiles and glances he would receive from a certain Chinese young woman._

_The day he confessed to her, watching as her eyes lit up in glee._

_The secret kisses the girl would give him at the very top of the Order, right in the rays of the moon and out of the sight of peeping golems, whispering "I love yous" till bedtime…_

Why give that up?

Snapping out of his revere, he attempted to move, only to find that the marionettes had done quick work with the threads. They clung to him like spider webs and stiffened his body. He tried to cry out to his cracked self on the other side of the crowd, but the 42nd, 43rd and 44th placed its thread around his head, stiffening it and his mouth. The 45th marionette began to place a thread on him, but with his remaining left forearm, right arm and left leg, he began pushing through the crowd furiously.

"_**We Are Bookmen. We Are Bookmen. We Are Bookmen. We Are Bookmen."**_

'I will not be bound by this!'

His back was rigid from the strings, but he paid no mind, pushing the others out the way, knowing that some behind him were gripping for him.

'I am not a Bookman without any room for emotions!'

He punched some of his past selves to get them out of the way, angry at his leg for being dead weight.

'I have a family!'

Finally, he could see his cracked self reaching for him, the hand and face looking tons more damaged than before, but he reached for it nonetheless. The damaged body still cried out for him, happy tears in his eyes as a cracked smile stretched gingerly on his face.

"_**We Are Bookmen. We Are Bookmen. We Are Bookmen. We Are Bookmen."**_

He tried to gasp out in shock as he saw the crowd push the one he wanted to be away and to the ground, cracking the body's hip.

'I am his friend!'

The Cracked cried out in agony, but did its best to stifle its pain, reaching out to him from the ground. He reached for it as well, wincing when he felt the 45th wrap its thread around his left forearm, immobilizing it.

'I am her brother!'

His frustration grew considerably, their chanting growing louder and louder. The 46th placed its thread on the foot of his right leg, immobilizing it completely. He felt the crowd drawing him back.

'I am her lover!'

"_**We Are Bookmen. We Are Bookmen. We Are Bookmen. We Are Bookmen."**_

The 47th placed its string on his right hand, immobilizing the entire arm, though his hand was still outstretched. He was completely stiffened, slowly being pulled back into the crowd, being consumed by them. He watched helplessly as the 1st appeared in front of him, smiling wryly before he turned into a doll straight out of a horror film, eyes rolling around in its head, its maw gaping open and trembling as it laughed like a manic little child. The 48th proceeded to place a special thread around his neck, it glistening like a knife. The Cracked cried out for him from the ground.

'No! STOP!'

The string was prepared to tighten. Their maws popped opened simultaneously, necks twisting, eyes rolling.

"_**WE ARE ALL BOOKMEN."**_

'I AM AN EXORCIST, DAMMIT!'

Everything blacked out.


	16. Savior of Dreams

"_Well it's about time you said it, boy."_

* * *

The Marionettes began dropping in slow motion to the ground, not a sound escaping their mouths. Their eyes rolled back into their heads, and their hands fell limp.

Lavi felt movement come back to his body, the strings falling away from his body.

'I'm …freed?'

He came out of his daze, looking at the Cracked. He was smiling in uncontainable joy, tears running down his face, his arms outstretched toward the real redhead. Lavi was fixing to smile as well as he fell away from the dolls that had once almost held him hostage.

Then he caught sight of black cloth rustling as if in the wind. His head followed it.

His eyes widened, pupils constricting.

There was a woman he'd never seen before. She wore a black dress with a blood red ribbon wrapped around her neck, a black corset with white lace trim around her waist, high heeled black boots, and a top hat with white roses wrapped around it. Her long, white hair floated lightly in the non-existent wind, curling many different ways as if the strands were alive.

She was poised in a way that looked as if she slashed something, and upon catching sight of her white gloved hands, he saw her sword, the monstrously large cleaver it was.

It was definitely Allen's.

She began to straighten herself, her time seeming to go by a lot faster than his own. She straightened herself from the position she'd been in, stretching her back lightly before simply standing there, her back to him, with the sword in her right hand.

'A…Allen?'

She stabbed the sword into the ground.

Everything evaporated with a pulse. The Marionettes, black upside down stars having appeared on their eye patches, disappeared into dust. The black of the surroundings turned stark white, black flitting away like paper. Lavi turned back to the Cracked to see its expression, shocked to find that it no longer really had a face. It no longer looked like him, but was a green, transparent glowing body. It flickered lightly as it reached for him, bringing him into an embrace.

"_You almost went over the deep end, child. Good thing you said it in the nick of time, or I wouldn't have been able to save you."_

Lavi began turning back to her. He noticed out of the corner of his eye, that the cross on the sword was green and pulsating. He then felt himself fall into the body, feeling warmth suddenly engulf him. Green wisps fluttered around him blocking his eyesight a bit.

The woman turned around calmly, but he was unable to see her face due to the green wind that constantly passed over his eye. She walked toward him, her heels clacking on the ground until she was right in front of him.

She then bent down to his level, but all he could see was parts of her body, and just a bit of her face, though it was shadowed. Her glowing mouth smiled at him.

"_What are you still doing here? Your family is waiting for you outside."_

She brought her left hand up.

"_Time to wake up, Lavi."_

She then snapped her fingers.

His vision flashed white.


	17. Rejoice! He Has Awakened

**I'll be brief. **

**The last one was dramatic as hell, huh? :D**

**Disclaimer: If by writing this I'm stealing -Man, then blue is actually red.**

* * *

Lavi woke from his dream with a start, almost gasping.

He heard something that had previously been beeping frantically calm down in almost a second, as well as a large amount of rustling and gasping. He blinked at the suddenly large amount of light he noticed was in the hospital room. White cloth was waving around nearly in front of him, reminding him of the woman in his dream.

Then the sense of touch and feeling began to come back to him. He felt a throbbing sensation in his wrists, though they weren't nearly as painful as they'd been before. In fact, they were slowly feeling better than they had since he last remembered. He also noticed that his behind was unusually cold, though he could feel cloth. Looking up slightly and still dazed, he noticed that he, at some point, had fallen off of his bed. He could also finally feel that someone was behind him, holding him up as his legs lay outstretched in front of him.

He especially felt the water that dropped on his shoulder. After blinking some more, startled even more out of his stunned moment, he turned his face to the right to see who it was.

Linali was there, holding his back to her chest, her arms wrapped under his armpits to hold him up. Tears ran like a river down her flushed cheeks, and he finally noticed that she was hiccupping a little. Her eyebrows were drawn in and upward. She drew her lips together, eyes widening, her irides searching his revealed one.

"Lina…li?" he muttered, a bit sleepily.

She burst out crying then. Burying her face into his neck, she held him tightly and cried as if she'd been holding in a river. She tried to say something at some point, but gave up to sobbing helplessly on him. He was jolted the rest of the way out of his daze due to this, concern for his girlfriend overriding any other emotion he'd been feeling.

"Linali, it is okay…" he began, but trailed off, noticing that they weren't the only two in the hospital room.

Several scientists were there as well, some outside of the room but seen through the window, shock on their faces. They seemed as if they didn't know what to do with themselves for a while. Then one of the scientists jolted out of their shock, joy overcoming their features.

"Why the hell did you scare us like that, Lavi-san?!" a woman screeched from outside, though she had happy tears in her eyes.

The other scientists in the area burst out into questions as well. A few didn't bother asking questions, simply turning to the person nearest to them and hugging them, crying out in happiness. Others cheered, holding hands and raising them, and some didn't know what to do other than hold a hand to their hearts and finally breathe. One nearly fainted.

"Whoa whoa whoa! Hold up! I don't even know what's going on!" Lavi exclaimed, raising his hands in some sort of defense as some of the men in the room moved forward to hug him, sweat dropping from his hairline.

At this a lot of them fixed themselves up, coughing out of embarrassment from their reactions. An elderly scientist, who hadn't moved an inch the entire time, smiled at him, her shoulders seeming to unwind from whatever stiff position they had been in. The woman pushed a strand of white hair out of her wrinkled face.

"Well, Mr…Lavi. You nearly died."

Lavi waited a few seconds for them to tell him "April Fools…or not" or something.

The woman's expression said otherwise.

"What?" he asked, caught completely off guard.

"Hand me the papers, dear," the elderly woman told a young man beside her, who hurriedly did as he was told. The somewhat short woman wearing a scientist's coat, short hair tied into a ball at the back of her head, coughed lightly before continuing.

"Lavi, your cardiograph began beeping more rapidly about two hours and twenty minutes ago at ten forty-five this morning. There was no explanation as to why, but you were unconscious and we were unable to wake you up. At eleven o' clock, Ms. Lee was informed of your condition and rushed over to try and wake you. Nothing she or we tried worked. It wasn't until twenty minutes later that she discovered a black star mark on you. It seems that you had somehow been infected with AKUMA blood."

Lavi gasped at that. He hadn't been shot the entire time they were heading to the Asian Branch. When would he have the time to get shot?

"Yes, I can see the confusion on your face. To be honest, we are just as confused. Had you been shot, it would've reacted immediately, but yours decided to wait...Anyway, it was quite unfortunate, but the star was found on your head, thus no amputation would've been able to help you."

Linali had found it…he glanced to his right, his still sobbing girlfriend clinging to him like a lifeline. It must've scared her something horrible to see the mark on him, especially there.

"We began looking for a way to perhaps undo the AKUMA blood poisoning, but every method we could think of was either too old styled and not used, like bloodletting or leeches, or didn't work, like the serum a group of scientists had been experimenting with. Rather, it made the process go faster."

The woman said the last part quite wryly, opening her beige eyes briefly to glance at the group which backed up into a corner.

"From then on, we could do nothing. Ms. Lee stated that because your innocence was upgrading that maybe you'd be able to cleanse yourself of the poisoning. We agreed with her initially, but as the time passed, your skin got darker and darker. By one o' clock, you were completely pitch black, but she absolutely refused to let you go. For her own safety, we were getting ready to forcefully remove her from the room before you burst into poisonous dust, that is, until you muttered something. Then, the crystals that were in your wrists dissolved."

'They…they what?'

He suddenly remembered how he'd moved his hand before without pain and moved them again to see his innocence. He gasped in surprise.

His innocence, when deactivated, formed some sort of bracelet around each wrist. It was deep red, almost mahogany, but when it gleamed in bright light, the actual red in it could be seen. There was also some sort of button looking part on the bands, though he didn't bother to touch it, too awed at the sight of his evolved innocence. He subtly noticed the cross marks at the top of his wrists, where the crystals had been.

The woman smiled, walking closer to the door, "Well, after that, everything fixed itself. It was silent for a second after the crystals dissolved, but then your skin suddenly began turning back to normal again. The crystals, having turned into liquid, developed into some sort of rabbit-like form before going back around your wrists. The liquid hardened into those bracelets you have now. Your heartbeat had increased drastically during the innocence transformation, but you seem just fine now," then her voice evolved to that of a business woman, serious by all means, and she handed him a piece of paper before leaving," I'll expect to see you here every Tuesday and Thursday for a checkup. We want to make sure you're perfectly healthy. It's already been assure that you no longer have AKUMA poisoning though, so don't worry about that. What you should be concerned about now is Ms. Lee, who's believed that you would survive this entire time. You've put the poor girl through nothing but a bunch of stress," Then she smiled once more, "Be sure to apologize correctly."

Then the woman walked out of the door.

Lavi smiled from where the woman left, but then turned his complete attention to the girl whose sobs had died down to hiccups and sniffling. He crossed his legs Indian style and moved his arms to embrace her around her waist, holding her tight, letting her know that he would stay with her. For a moment, she just clutched the sides of his shirt, her head bowed and eyes gleaming with unshed tears. Then the young woman climbed into his lap. Sniffling, she moved her arms from under his to around his neck, her legs now laying over one of his bent ones. He cradled her and began rocking back and forth slightly.

"I'm here, Linali. I'll always be here for you, love."

Just as he whispered those words, she began to cry all over again, nuzzling her face into him again. Lavi's own joyous tears escaped his visible eye. His eye closed tightly as the two squeezed each other, opening it slightly to look at his new bracelets gratefully. He remembered the flickering rabbit and smiled.

"I'm here because I'm an exorcist."

~END ACT 1~


	18. Act 2: The Process has Begun

**Hey, it's been a while. I apologize that it's taken so long to update, and the chapter is one of the shorter ones. I really wanted to update more, but things have been so busy, I just didn't have the time. I'll try my best to update more for now on. Thank you for your encouraging reviews. :)  
Also, I redid a few things in chapter 11. You may see a few more changes show up in previous chapters as time goes on.  
Consistency is necessary in stories, after all.**

**If you have any constructive criticism, I'll accept it and try to improve. Flames are promptly ignored.**

** -JD**

**DISCLAIMER: Physics sucks and AP classes were very complicated sometimes.**

* * *

The doors to the infirmary were thrown open a few minutes after Lavi was finally able to calm Linali down and the two were relaxing on the soft bed he'd been resident to since his arrival to the Asian Branch. Though the two had initially been startled, thinking it was someone else, they calmed considerably when they recognized the trademark white hair and the trademark glare of two of their friends.

"Labbi!" Allen cried out, her mouth still slightly filled with a French roll, eyes wide, shirt slightly rumpled and hair cut back to its previous length.

The whitette rushed over, silver eyes sparkling in worry as she looked him over. The Japanese male followed behind her, eyes widening slightly when he noticed that the rabbit looked healthier.

"Om'God are yo' okay," she asked, holding his shoulders, eyes searching for anything peculiar, pausing only to swallow her food.

He grinned at the girl's antics, "Yeah, I'm okay, Al-chan! Doing a lot better, actually! The doc says I can leave tomorrow."

Allen's expression calmed, shoulders sagging as she took a seat at his left, Linali at his right on the bed, "Ah, thank God. I didn't know what had happened-"

"Yeah, my case was very rare. Not even the doctors knew what to-."

"-after I fell out," her hands clasped her face, "I was so freaked out when I woke up again! I thought-"

"Wait, what?" Lavi asked, eye wide and worried, vividly remembering what happened during the mission.

"You fell out? Why? Where?" Linali asked, remembering as well, eyes searching for any unattended injury.

Sweat fell down the side of her face, eyes adverting from theirs, "Ah, well, it's nothing really-"

"Moyashi," Kanda hissed.

"Fine, fine, Bakanda!" she growled back lowly, hands gripping the armrests of her chair.

She coughed in her fist before facing the two again, "Well, my innocence reacted to yours doing…whatever it was, and tried to fix it…I think."

"She fainted in the middle of a hallway, scaring everyone," Kanda replied to the unanswered question, voice flat.

"Okay, I may have scared a few people…"

"A doctor was about to attempt CPR."

"…maybe a few more people than I thought-."

"Another said the apocalypse was coming."

"It ain't even that drastic!" she snarled, fists clenching.

Everyone looked at her as if she grew a head. Realizing her mistake, she coughed into her fist again before focusing on Lavi, smiling wryly.

"Anyway, forget about me, how are you feeling? What was wrong with you?"

Lavi decided to go along with it, "I had AKUMA blood poisoning for some reason. Don't know where I got it from, but it made it harder to connect with my Innocence."

"You were about to mention something else weird, too, Lavi," Linali softly reminded him, left hand hidden between their bodies and reaching for his.

He blinked at her for a sec, secretly clasping her hand, "Oh yeah! I think I saw your innocence help me, Allen! She was really cool!"

"What? Really?!" Allen replied, eyes practically glowing.

Kanda's eyes narrowed, watching Allen for another second before turning to listen to his…frie…nd.

"Yeah," he replied, getting excited, "It had a humanoid body! She had white hair, just like yours, only longer and a lot wavier. She had your sword, too! She was dressed in all black with some white here and there, dressed like a sort of wealthy lady, though she wore a top hat. Really different, but way beyond cool!"

"That sounds awesome! I hope I see her one day!" Allen replied enthusiastically, not noticing how something seemed to click with the three others in the room with her.

_Grrrrooooooowwwww-_

The whitette blushed furiously, clutching her stomach, "Oh, umm…I'll go back to the cafeteria now."

She stood gingerly, still embarrassed, and moved to the bed to pull him into a tight embrace. Smiling, she let him go and stared into his eye.

"When you get better, be sure to join me, okay? You need to eat to get your strength back up!"

"Yeah, you would know."

"Shut up, Bakanda."

She pouted, glaring at Kanda, making Linali giggle, before going to the door and waving goodbye.

Once the three were sure they were alone, they checked the room for any camera or microphone as unsuspiciously as they could muster—rather Lavi and Linali searched while Kanda stood in place and glared at any area he thought could hold a listening device or anything. Then, Lavi and Linali sat back onto the bed while Kanda took a seat.

"Older woman…now that I think about it…" Lavi thought aloud.

"She could've been the voice from back then at the broken-down jeep area," Linali completed.

Kanda kind of kept to himself as the other two discussed what they thought about the woman Lavi had seen during his time of torture since he couldn't get his mind off of Allen's reaction to first realizing that he'd seen her.

She hadn't been surprised.

In fact, she'd almost expected him to mention her. Allen had already known about the woman. What was going on…

"But she saved your life, so I don't think she's bad," Linali muttered, looking off to the side, remembering just how close he was to dying.

"…True. Had she been a second later, I'd be…I guess we can't make any sort of real judgment about her yet."

"Yeah, you can," Kanda said, looking at the two like they were a little stupid.

They blinked at him.

"Whoever—whatever the woman is, she's good. It's obvious, idiots."

* * *

Road was getting a headache

A real, throbbing, legitimate migraine.

It was becoming harder and harder to keep up her façade in front of the Earl—not too long after having those flashes pop up in her brain, she dropped the affection she'd added to his name, though she still forced herself to say it in such a cuddly manner. She was certain that there was foul play involved between Mother and him—she didn't exactly remember Neah, but Lero seemed to and he loved her, so she must've been nice enough to be called Mother. Not to mention, whenever she thought of either name, flashes of…something would show up.

Flashes involved with Mother's name would always show a black-haired woman smiling at her, skin the same color as what Road had previously thought was her Noah form. At one point, Road had seen tiny hands reach to Mother, the woman reaching back with a smile on her face. Road was almost certain that those tiny hands were her own. At another point, the flash revealed the woman's back in the kitchen, cooking up a storm beside an…AKUMA? That flash confused her most, since the AKUMA turned to Mother and smiled in a way they never did now. It also didn't have the ever-present aura of being something evil.

Occasionally, though, the flashes revealed something different.

Sometimes, Mother would be covered in blood. Sometimes she'd be dead, sometimes, alive and struggling to keep alive and seeming to say something. Sometimes, Road's vision would turn from Mother to a gruesome man surrounded by a pitch-black aura. Sometimes, she'd see that aura reach out to her.

Every time she remembered the aura, though, for some reason she would attempt to reason against the fact that it even existed. Auras don't move. Not like that.

Nah, the flash must've been wrong. Auras like that don't exist.

They simply don't.

Wait.

There she went again.

Her mind was playing tricks on her, and she really didn't like it.

She had seen an aura.

She had not. Auras like that don't exist.

Neah is an enemy.

No, she's not.

Neah is Mother.

Your mother is Tricia.

Yes…

Yes she is.

She's mother.

But she's not Mother.

"Mother" is kind and sweet and smiles and cooks, though not well. She's like a doll, a kind doll.

Mother is kind and sweet and she cooked and smiled and hugged and danced and dreamed and sang.

Sang.

Yes, she saw Mother singing in a flash before.

She was gurgling on her own blood.

That's when the Earl came into play.

Earl would bring up flashes of death and destruction and burning and pain, heartache, sorrow. Then there was, of course, the aura

THAT DOESN'T EXIST.

No, it does.

How do you know?

The Flashes told her so.

Flashes? Do you really believe those things?

Yes.

Stupid girl.

I wouldn't call myself stupid, who are you?

No one but you.

Liar.

The Aura did exist.

It does exist.

Even now, it exists.

She groaned in pain, twisting in her bed as she clutched her head.

MAKEABREAKMAKEABREAKMAKEABREAKMAKEABREAKMAKEABREAK MAKEABREAKMAKEABREAK

Tyki peeked a concerned eye into Road's room. The girl may have not noticed, but she seemed to be sick with something, an impracticable situation.

Noah didn't get sick.

She was making herself sick for some reason.

Even though she didn't seem to have a cold, she was sweating and groaning and clutching her head and rolling in the bed. She paid no attention to her dolls or to school or anything. Sheryl wouldn't be happy if he found out.

But he wouldn't for a while. The Millennium Earl finally put him and Wisely to work, sending off to different places along side hoards of AKUMA, allowing them to stretch their limbs and destroy. The few times he did see the man at work, he was sitting back as he gladly watched a man forced to kill his family, or other situations of the like, twirling his fingers around as he moved his target.

Tricia, Sheryl's wife, seemed saddened by that, but never said a thing.

Wisely was a weird Noah. He was a sadistic person and hated exorcists, but he simply didn't have the drive to kill. In order to keep him moving, the Earl had to give him a quota for each day just so he won't sit on his lazy ass and let Sheryl do everything. He'd killed simply because he wanted to be out of the training room, it seemed.

Ah, anyway.

When he final came out of his thoughts, Tyki noticed Tricia coming to Road's room from down the hall. The woman occasionally visited her, but usually didn't bother visiting the mansion in favor of staying in her own grand building, though her daughter hung around, practically living in the one she kept away from. She was holding nothing in her hands but a wet cloth. She glanced up at Tyki with sapphire, doe eyes when she arrived at the door, but gave him no other signal of recognition as she cautiously pushed past him into the room.

Tyki huffed at her rudeness, but got the picture.

He left the woman to awkwardly mother her child.


End file.
